Historic Vatican fraud trial to expose London secrets

Vatican City: A once-powerful Catholic cardinal and nine others stand trial at the Vatican this week in an embezzlement scandal that allegedly saw charity funds used in a ruinous London property venture.

Ex-cardinal Angelo Becciu, who served as the equivalent of a papal chief of staff for Pope Francis before being fired last year, has been charged with crimes including embezzlement and abuse of office.

It is the first time a cardinal has been indicted by Vatican criminal prosecutors and Becciu, 73, will be the headliner of a trial set to last months. The defendants face jail time or stiff fines if found guilty.

The alleged graft will have enraged Francis, 84, who has vowed all-out war on corruption and has increased oversight of the Vatican’s finances, dogged for decades by scandal. Tuesday’s hearing is expected to be purely technical and the trial, held in a makeshift courtroom in the Vatican Museums, may be adjourned after the summer break. It was not clear whether Becciu, stripped of his red biretta, will be present.