Event
Vatican trial over Secretariat of State funds
Vatican Tribunal judgment of 16 December 2023; appeal ruling of 17 March 2026.
- Dates
- Jul 2021 –
The trial concerned the Secretariat of State’s investments, chiefly a London property. The IOR was not a defendant.
Connections 10
interventions
- Tribunal of Vatican City State 16 Dec 2023 convicted nine defendants and acquitted one Scholarship & press 1
- Vatican Court of Appeal 17 Mar 2026 declared parts of the first trial null and ordered them redone Scholarship & press 2
- Pope Francis issued four rescripts widening the prosecutors' powers; the Court of Appeal found one ineffective because it was not published Scholarship & press 2
involved
- Angelo Becciu defendant; convicted of three counts of embezzlement in 2023 Scholarship & press 1
- Secretariat of State the office whose funds were at issue Scholarship & press 1
- Tribunal of Vatican City State first-instance court Scholarship & press 1
- Vatican Court of Appeal appeal court Scholarship & press 2
-
Vatican Court of Appeal
29 October 2026: an eleven-minute hearing that only set dates; hearings 26-29 January 2027
Scholarship & press
3
English summary of ANSA: the hearing of 29 October 2026 lasted eleven minutes; the court fixed hearings from 26 to 29 January 2027 on preliminary questions only, not the merits. The court's order of 17 March had told the prosecutors to file the full record of the investigation.
- Financial Information Authority its former president René Brülhart and director Tommaso Di Ruzza were acquitted of abuse of office and fined for failing to report a suspicious transaction Scholarship & press 1
- Angelo Becciu acquitted on all other charges (Vatican News) Scholarship & press 1
Timeline 3 dates
- Jul 2021 – Vatican trial over Secretariat of State funds
- 16 Dec 2023 Tribunal of Vatican City State intervened in Vatican trial over Secretariat of State funds
- 17 Mar 2026 Vatican Court of Appeal intervened in Vatican trial over Secretariat of State funds
Proof 3 sources
-
Vatican trial defendants sentenced to total of 37 years in prison, Vatican News, 16 Dec 2023.
Scholarship & press
by the Vatican Tribunal at the conclusion of the trial regarding the management of funds of the Secretariat of State
Five years and six months imprisonment, plus perpetual interdiction from public office and an eight thousand euro fine
the Secretariat of State no longer had available the money once it had been paid to invest in the fund's shares
The verdict issued on the afternoon of 16 December came after 86 hearings.
respectively at the time Director General and President of the Vatican's Supervisory and Financial Information Authority
both were acquitted of the crimes of abuse of office charged against them and found guilty only of the offences of failure to denounce and failure to report to the Promoter of Justice a suspicious transaction
In contrast, defendants Mincione, Torzi, Tirabassi, Becciu, Squillace, Crasso, Di Ruzza and Brulhart were acquitted of all other crimes charged against them.
-
Vatican appeals court declares partial mistrial in Cardinal Becciu trial, Catholic Review (OSV News), 17 Mar 2026.
Scholarship & press
In a 16-page ruling issued March 17, the Court of Appeal presided over by Archbishop Alejandro Arellano Cedillo declared that Vatican prosecutors made procedural errors
The appeals court found that one of the rescripts effectively functioned as legislation, and that Pope Francis’ failure to make it public rendered it ineffective.
The court specified that ruling of “relative nullity” does not completely overturn the legal effects of the original judgment in December 2023
-
Udienza lampo nel processo Becciu, tutto rinviato a fine gennaio, ANSA, 29 Oct 2026.
Scholarship & press
Questa mattina si è tenuta un'udienza lampo, undici minuti, per rinviare tutto a partire dal 26 gennaio 2027.
Page history 1 change
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