Vatican court hands down historic money laundering verdict

Source: Vatican Media

The Holy See Press Office has announced that the first person in the Vatican's history has been tried and found guilty of money laundering.

Last Thursday, the Holy See Press Office released a statement announcing that Angelo Proietti was found guilty of money laundering on 17 December. The statement says that Proietti was handed a prison sentence of two years and six months. In addition, the judge ordered the confiscation of the more than one million Euro, seized by Vatican authorities in 2014.

The Holy See's statement continues to say that the investigation was a collaborative one between the Office of the Promoter of Justice, the Financial Intelligence Authority, the Vatican City State Gendarmerie, and Italy.

The statement concludes that this decisions "assumes fundamental importance" in the Vatican's efforts to prevent money laundering and the financing of terrorism.

This is the first time the Vatican has prosecuted someone for this offence since it became a criminal offence in the Vatican in 2010 as part of the Vatican's financial reform.