Suspended Vatican official hit with new money-laundering charges
January 21, 2014
A suspended Vatican official who is already on trial for alleged financial improprieties now faces new criminal charges of money-laundering.
Msgr. Nunzio Scarano, who is living under house arrest during his trial for attempting to bring €20 million into Italy illegally, has been re-arrested and charged with laundering millions of euros through his personal account at the Vatican bank. Prosecutors say that Msgr. Scarano accepted donations from people who thought they were contributing to a charity home, deposited the funds in his bank account, and ultimately used the money to pass of the mortgage on a luxurious apartment he maintained in Salerno. Police reported that they had frozen €6.5 million in bank accounts and real estate holdings belonging to the former Vatican official.
Msgr. Scarano had been the director of accounting for the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See (APSA), the office that handles financial affairs for the Vatican, until he was suspended from that post when the money-laundering charges first came to light. Although he has conceded that he acted as a middleman in various off-the-books financial transactions, he has claimed that other Vatican officials were aware of and approved his involvement.
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Further information:
- Vatican monsignor arrested for money laundering (AP)
- Arrested Vatican prelate in new money laundering charge (Reuters)
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Posted by: hartwood01 -
Jan. 22, 2014 11:36 AM ET USA
Exactly,01! Our Protestant brethern have always looked askance at the Vatican goings on,and one can hardly defend it.
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Posted by: -
Jan. 22, 2014 9:52 AM ET USA
This reprehensible behavior coupled with that of the sex abuse scandal is the very reason Catholics have come to distrust the clery and hierarchy of the Church. It is what has driven millions out of the Church. When will it end?
