After a raid on a storeroom near St Peter’s Square, police have seized a cache of 340,000 illicit Vatican souvenirs worth some US$2million.
The souvenirs carried the Pope’s photo without permission, as well as illegally carrying the Vatican coat of arms and the emblem of the papal tiara.
The merchants selling the trinkets wanted to take advantage of increased tourism to Rome associated with Jubilee Year of Mercy, police said.
Three people were arrested on charges of counterfeiting, receiving stolen goods and breaching copyright.