VATICAN CITY — The first cardinal to face a criminal trial in a Vatican courtroom, once one of the most powerful officials of the Roman Catholic Church, told the papal city-state court on Thursday that he was willing to clear his name against charges of embezzlement and abuse of office .
The cardinal, Giovanni Angelo Becciu, along with nine others, is accused of defrauding the Vatican. In particular, the case focuses primarily on a London real estate investment that prosecutors say lost the Vatican millions while enriching middlemen.
It was a scene that only became possible after Pope Francis amended the law of the Vatican city-state to wipe out special privileges previously enjoyed by cardinals and bishops over criminal offenses.
All the accused have denied their wrongdoing, and Cardinal Becciu, 73, again declared his innocence in emotional terms on Thursday.
He was subjected to “a media assassination,” he said, reading a statement, a “violent and vulgar campaign” that questioned his moral integrity.
“I was portrayed as a corrupt man, greedy for money, disloyal to the Pope,” he told the court, adding: “I am here with my head held high, with a clear conscience.”
At the time of the deal, Cardinal Becciu was “sostituto,” or chief of staff, of the Secretariat of State of the Holy See, where he played a key role in directing the Curia, the bureaucracy that runs the Vatican. Pope Francis fired him from his last Vatican position in September 2020 while the deal was under investigation.
The trial began on July 27, 2021, but was stalled by preliminary arguments as defense attorneys filed a number of objections and motions to dismiss the case, including alleging that the prosecution had withheld evidence, affecting their ability to defend their clients. effective.
Earlier this month, the court dismissed the defense’s claims, allowing the trial to continue.
While the case revolves around the Vatican’s purchase of a building in Chelsea, one of London’s wealthiest neighborhoods, it also involves unrelated charges, including allegations that Cardinal Becciu gave Vatican money to a charity run by his brother. in Sardinia.
Cardinal Becciu was due to take the position on Thursday, but Vatican prosecutor Alessandro Diddi said he would not be able to question the cardinal because the Covid-19 cases in his office had not allowed him to prepare.
Instead, the prelate read a statement to the court declaring his innocence, and answered questions from the Chief Justice, Giuseppe Pignatone, about two payments by the Secretariat of State into a church account in Sardinia in connection with a charity his brother ran at the time. . The prosecution alleges that the money benefited his family.
In the case of the first — a payment of 25,000 euros, about $27,000 at current exchange rates, made in 2015 — Cardinal Becciu said the secretariat had financed a bread maker for a bakery, “a project that provided social work for young people. underprivileged people.” He quoted a May 2020 speech by Francis on the dignity of work.
In the case of the second – €100,000 in 2018 – the cardinal said the money had been deposited into a fund set aside by a Sardinian bishop to pay for the construction of a social center that would house various charitable activities. The money was still there, he added, and a ceremony had taken place last month to mark the start of construction work.
His brother received a salary from the charity between 2016 and 2021, the cardinal said, after which he retired and started working for free.
In his statement to the court, Cardinal Becciu said he was not afraid of the truth. “On the contrary, I want the truth to be proclaimed as soon as possible,” he said. “I have always acted in the best interests of the Apostolic See and the whole Church.”