Former Head of Vatican Institute for Works of Religion on Trial for Embezzlement

78-year-old Angelo Caloia and his lawyer, 94-year-old Gabriele Liuzzo are accused of embezzlement and money laundering in real estate transactions between 2001 and 2008. The third man included in the investigation, Lelio Scarletti, former general director of the IOR, died several years ago.

The three men are accused of undervaluing about thirty buildings sold by the Vatican in order to embezzle the funds. The global losses have been evaluated at over 50 million euros (nearly $62 million).

In a statement published on March 2, 2018, the IOR declared that this new step:

shows once again the significant commitment that IOR’s management has undertaken in the last four years in order to implement strong and transparent governance, which complies with the most rigorous international standards.

The Institute for Works of Religion, colloquially known as the “Vatican Bank” is the Holy See’s main financial institution. Traditionally financed by the Peter’s Pence, its president has been a Frenchman, Jean-Baptiste de Franssu, since 2014.