A major controversy erupted this Thursday around Pope Francis, as a cardinal thrown out by a criminal court at the Vatican for alleged financial fraud denounced that the Church leader had allowed payment of one million euros to Al Qaeda as ransom for a Colombian nun kidnapped in Mali.

Angelo Becciu, the first cardinal to face ecclesiastical justice, in the midst of his defense announced the alleged secret agreement with the terrorist organization.

In the two hours he spent in court, the 73-year-old Italian cardinal confirmed that “completely baseless accusations” were being made against him. Along with him, nine other people have been tried in the Vatican since July last year for fraud, embezzlement, abuse of power, money laundering, corruption and extortion.

Becciu affirmed that the Pope had given his consent for a one -million euro transaction to free Colombian nun Gloria Cecilia Narváez, who was released in October 2021 after more than four years in captivity in Mali at the hands of an Al Qaeda -linked group.

Although he did not specify whether a ransom had finally been paid, this revelation revealed the use of the services of a British security company, largely thanks to the intermediation of Italian Cecilia Marogna.

Also accused in the process, Marogna said he was working with the cardinal for intelligence activities aimed at obtaining the release of the kidnapped nun, and received 575,000 euros (about $ 600,000) from the Secretary of State in a Slovenian account.

However, Becciu strongly denied that he had a relationship with Marogna, who has been dubbed “the cardinal’s lady” by the Italian press.

Beyond the seriousness of the accusation, for which no evidence has yet been presented so far, the fear What is running now within the Church is that, attracted by this story, various criminal organizations from around the world have started hunting for the religious with the aim of collecting juicy ransom.

The case against Becciu

At the heart of the judgment is the expensive purchase of a prestigious building in London as part of Holy See’s investment activities, whose real estate assets are large.

Becciu, who was ousted and stripped of the cardinal privileges of Pope Francis in September 2020, has denied any reckless use of St. Peter’s Pence, the large annual collection of donations dedicated to the pope’s charitable actions.

“It was not Pence’s funds that were used, but those of the Secretary of State,” he said, referring to the Holy See’s central government, making sure he “followed the practices” of his predecessors and featured “trust.” “placed with their collaborators.

At the end of January, the Vatican confirmed that it had sold the 17,000 -square -meter building at 60 Sloane Square, in the high -rise neighborhood of Chelsea, where acquisition at a high price and with a hidden mortgage severely damaged his reputation.

With information from the AFP

DB