Vatican indicts 10, including cardinal, for financial crimes

The Vatican on Saturday announced that is charging 10 people with financial crimes, including a prominent Italian cardinal. The charges included embezzlement, money laundering, fraud, extortion and abuse of office relating to financial investments the financial arm of the Vatican made in London in 2018. 

Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Becciu, who used to hold a senior office position in the Vatican administration, will go on trial on July 27, along with two top officials at the Vatican's Financial Intelligence Unit. The trial centers around the multi-million euro purchase by the Vatican of a building in one of London's nicest districts. The Vatican made their investigation of the crimes public in 2019, when Vatican police raided the the offices of the Secretariat of State, the central administrator of the Catholic Church and offices of the Vatican's Financial Information Authority.