“Vatileaks: Pope’s butler and ‘accomplice’ to stand trial ” & related articles

Paolo Gabriele, the Pope’s former butler, and a second Vatican employee, must stand trial for their role in stealing and leaking confidential papers in a scandal dubbed Vatileaks, a magistrate ruled.

The Telegram (U.K.)

12:21PM BST 13 Aug 2012

 

Mr Gabriele, who was arrested in May on suspicion of stealing secret documents from the pope’s office and leaking them to journalists, is accused of “aggravated theft.”

Judge Piero Bonnet also charged Claudio Sciarpelletti, an analyst and programmer in the Vatican state secretariat, with complicity.

It is the first time Mr Sciarpelletti’s name had been mentioned.

Gabriele risks up to six years in prison. The Vatican has said the trial will not take place until October at the earliest.

The 46-year-old butler was arrested during an investigation into the leak of private papal documents to the media. He was held for 53 days in a Vatican cell before being put under house arrest in July to await the judge’s decision.

The Vatican said after his arrest it had found documents and copying equipment in Gabriele’s home, revelations which shocked the close-knit Holy See community and saddened the aged pontiff.

The investigation into the leaking of secret Vatican documents is not over and other people are being investigated, a spokesman said.

“We don’t think we have finished our work …. The inquiry is still open with regard to other people who appear to be implicated,” Federico Lombardi quoted prosecutor Nicola Picardi as saying.

The Vatican has promised a public trial. No date was immediately announced.

Source: AFP

More to follow

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Pope’s butler to face trial over ‘Vatileaks’

 Pope Benedict XVI’s former butler and an accomplice have been ordered to stand trial for stealing and leaking confidential papers. The scandal is the latest to afflict the Roman Catholic Church.

DW.de (Deutche Welle)

13 August 2012

The former butler, 46-year-old Paolo Gabriele, is accused of “aggravated theft” in a case that has come to be known as “Vatileaks.”

Judge Piero Bonnet also charged an analyst and programmer in the Vatican state secretariat with complicity.

If found guilty, Gabriele could face up to six years in prison. The Vatican says the trial will not take place until October at the earliest.

He was arrested during an investigation into the leaking of private papal documents to the media. He was then detained for 53 days in a Vatican cell before being put under house arrest by the police in July.

Sensitive documents

The leaked documents included references to an alleged plot to kill the pope and details of controversial financial activities relating to the Vatican’s bank, the Institute of Religious Works. Some alleged corruption in the Vatican’s dealings with Italian companies, such as the payment of inflated prices for work.

Gabriele, who served the pope his meals and rode in the front seat of the pope mobile at the pontiff’s general audiences, in July reportedly wrote to Pope Benedict asking for forgiveness.

If convicted, he is widely expected to ask the pope for a pardon that Vatican sources say is likely to be granted.

If it were not, Gabriele would serve his term in an Italian jail according to bilateral agreements between the Vatican – the world’s smallest city-state – and Italy.

His arrest in May threw the global media spotlight on the Vatican’s financial activities as the Church faces growing allegations of graft.

tj/mz (Reuters, AFP, dpa)
Date 13.08.2012

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Pope’s butler to stand trial over Vatileaks scandal

Paolo Gabriele is accused of stealing secret documents and leaking them to the press.

thejournal.ie

13 August 2012

POPE BENEDICT XVI’s former butler and another Vatican employee must stand trial for stealing and leaking confidential papers in a scandal that exposed feuds within the Church, a magistrate said Monday.

Paolo Gabriele, who was arrested in May on suspicion of stealing secret documents from the pope’s office and leaking them to journalists, is accused of “aggravated theft,” a statement said.

Judge Piero Bonnet also charged Claudio Sciarpelletti, an analyst and computer programmer in the Vatican state secretariat – whose name had not been disclosed before – with complicity.

Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi told journalists the investigation into a “wide and complex case” was not yet over and would continue to target others believed to be implicated.

Gabriele could face up to six years in prison. The Vatican has said the trial will not take place until October at the earliest.

Lombardi said that Sciarpelletti had played a “marginal role” and could not really be considered an accomplice.

The 46-year-old butler was arrested during an investigation into the leak of private papal documents to the media. He was held for 53 days in a Vatican cell before being put under house arrest in July to await the judge’s decision.

The Vatican said after his arrest it had found documents and copying equipment in Gabriele’s home, revelations which shocked the close-knit Holy See community and saddened the 85-year-old German pontiff.

The father-of-three is alleged to have photocopied and leaked top-secret emails and letters, taken from the desk of Georg Gaenswein, the pope’s private secretary. Gabriele’s lawyers have denied media reports that their client was part of a wider whistleblowing operation aimed at shaking up the Vatican hierarchy.

There is a suspicion that he acted sincerely but was then manipulated as part of long-standing rivalries within the secretive Vatican administration.

“We don’t think we have finished our work …. The inquiry is still open with regard to other people who appear to be implicated,” spokesman Lombardi quoted prosecutor Nicola Picardi as saying Monday.

Gabriele, known as Paoletto, began working for the pope in 2006 and was one of a select few with access to Benedict’s private chambers. Under Vatican laws, a reprieve from the pope could come at any moment during the investigation or trial, but religious observers say that while Benedict may offer his spiritual pardon, he is unlikely to interfere in the legal process.

The Vatican has been shaken by the scandal, which has drawn attention to divisions between senior clergymen in the Vatican and in particular growing criticism of the powerful Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone. While the Vatican has officially reassured Bertone of its support and denied media reports of an internal power struggle, the embarrassment to the Church has been widespread and has taken a physical toll on the pontiff.

It is just the latest in a string of scandals which have plagued the Vatican in recent years, from allegations of money-laundering to clerical sex abuse.