The Authority says efforts to help the Vatican comply with international norms for fighting money laundering and terrorist financing are paying off.

A report which the Authority released last Friday says 150 suspicious financial transactions were flagged in 2017, 57 fewer than in the previous year.

Only eight of those were judged possibly to be the result of criminal activity.

Sixteen fewer reports were sent to the Promoter of Justice in the Vatican City's tribunal for investigation in comparison to the 24 sent in 2016.

The report noted none of the suspicious transactions involved financing terrorism.

Furthermore, the report confirmed a "robust reporting system and an effective application of the regulatory framework of the Holy See and the Vatican City State."

The Financial Information Authority was set up by Pope Benedict XVI in 2010 as an anti-money laundering watchdog unit.

Its establishment followed decades of scandals involving the Vatican Bank.

Among the successful prosecutions of serious criminal offences the Vatican undertook in 2017 was that of Giuseppe Profiti.

Profiti was the former president of the Vatican-owned Bambino Gesù Hospital.

He was given a one-year suspended prison sentence for "abuse of power" for diverting €422,000 (£370,000/$500,000) of the hospital's funds to upgrade former Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone's Vatican apartment.

The Financial Intelligence Authority reported it is also continuing with a "pro-active approach to cooperate and exchange information with its foreign counterparts to fight illicit financial activities."

Source

• NZ Herald
• National Catholic Reporter
• Catholic Herald
• Crux Now
• Image: 123RF

He told the Vatican tribunal that arrangements for remodeling Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone's Vatican apartment were made by Bertone himself.

Bertone was the person who contacted his firm about the renovations, Bandera said.

Both Bertone and Bandera have been called to give evidence at the trial, which is investigating Giuseppe Profiti and Massimo Spina's misappropriation of US$500,000 from the Bambino de Jesu Children's Hospital. They used the money to fund the renovation work on Bertone's apartment.

Until their arrest, Profiti and Spina were senior officials at the hospital, which is sponsored by the Pope.

Part of the indictment is that Profiti and Spina diverted the money to help Bandera (who has not been charged in the case) because his companies were struggling financially.

Bandera told the tribunal the cardinal made the arrangements with him directly via a series of emails, without going through a bid process as would ordinarily be required.

He explained he and the cardinal had known each other since 1991 or 1992 when Bertone was the bishop of Vercelli in northern Italy.

Bandera also said he volunteered to build a discount into the costs.

He said the cardinal wanted a "very normal residence, with average accommodation" - although his private salon "is a bit larger than normal."

On 22 September the judges heard from an official of the Government of the Vatican City State which normally handles construction projects on Vatican territory. They said personal involvement by a cardinal in selecting a firm was "anomalous."

Bertone (who was Pope emeritus Benedict XVI's Secretary of State) has not been charged with any criminal activity. Nor has he ever been considered a suspect in this case.

At the request of defence lawyers, the Vatican tribunal has agreed to require testimony from two officials who had sought to avoid appearances: Mariella Enoc, the current head of the hospital foundation; and Tommasso Di Ruzza, the director of the Vatican's Financial Information Authority.

Source

• Catholic Culture
• Crux
• Image: chiesadicagliari.it

The court is currently hearing conflicting reports about Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone's role in the fraud investigation. Bertone is the former Secretary of State under Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. Read more