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Vatican City A former president of the Vatican bank and his lawyer were found guilty of money laundering and embezzling millions of euros from property sales.
According to a statement released by the Vatican Jan. 21, Angelo Caloia, who served as president of the Institute for the Works of Religion from 1999 to 2009, and his lawyer, Gabriele Liuzzo, were sentenced to 8 years and 11 months for skimming profits from the sale of Vatican properties.
Giuseppe Pignatone, president of the Vatican tribunal, handed down the sentence and ordered Caloia and Liuzzo to pay a fine of 12,500 euros (US$15,200) each as well as return to the Vatican bank millions of euros frozen in their accounts at the beginning of the investigation.
Former Vatican Banker Convicted of Money Laundering and Embezzlement
The ruling by the Vatican court signaled the church’s desire to get its financial house in order following past scandals.
An image released by the Vatican shows the first hearing in the trial of Angelo Caloia, the former president of the Vatican Bank, in 2018.Credit.Osservatore Romano, via Reuters
Jan. 21, 2021
ROME A Vatican court on Thursday convicted a former senior official at the Vatican bank and his lawyer of embezzlement and money laundering, sending a strong signal that the church was determined to get its financial house in order.
The defendants Angelo Caloia, the president of the Vatican bank for two decades, and his onetime lawyer Gabriele Liuzzo had been accused of embezzling millions of euros through shady real estate deals between 2002 and 2007.
Australian agency admits serious error in reporting Vatican bank transfers The tower of the Institute for Works of Religion, often referred to as the Vatican bank, is pictured. CNS photo/Paul Haring
Australian agency admits serious error in reporting Vatican bank transfers By Cindy Wooden, Catholic News Service January 13, 2021
VATICAN CITY Australia s financial crime watchdog agency said it over-estimated by the equivalent of more than US$1.5 billion the amount of money transferred from the Vatican to Australia between 2014 and 2020.
According to the Australian, a daily newspaper, A computer coding error is believed to be the source of the miscalculation, with financial transfers involving Italy included in transfers involving the Vatican.
A troubled property investment has become a new source of embarrassment for the Vatican after a judge in Malta ordered the seizure of current accounts belonging to the Vatican Bank in Europe to recoup
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