Former pope contender becomes first-ever cardinal prosecuted in Vatican's criminal tribunal, court seeks $181 million



A former pope contender has become the first-ever cardinal to be prosecuted in Vatican's criminal court.

Cardinal Angelo Becciu was convicted of embezzling millions from the Vatican.

Judge Giuseppe Pignatone read the verdict on Saturday in a Vatican courtroom, which sentenced Cardinal Angelo Becciu to 5 ½ years in prison.

Prosecutor Alessandro Diddi boasted that the guilty verdict "showed we were correct."

Becciu's lawyer, Fabio Viglione, said he would appeal the sentence.

The BBC noted, "Becciu, 75, was the most senior Vatican official ever to face such charges and once seen as a papal contender himself."

In September 2020, Becciu, resigned from the Vatican's secretariat of state after being implicated in a financial scandal. Pope Francis accepted Becciu's resignation.

Becciu reportedly oversaw a multimillion-euro investment in a $380 million luxury property in London.

NBC News reported, "In the end, he was convicted of embezzlement stemming from the original investment of 200 million euros in a fund that bought into the London property, as well as for his 125,000 euro donation of Vatican money to a charity run by his brother in Sardinia. He was also convicted of using Vatican money to pay an intelligence analyst who in turn was convicted of using the money for herself."

Becciu allegedly paid 575,000 euros, about $627,000, to Cecilia Marogna for intelligence services. However, Marogna used that Vatican money to buy luxury goods and go on vacations, according to prosecutors.

The disgraced cardinal claimed that he thought the money was being used to pay a British security firm to negotiate the release of Gloria Narvaez – a Colombian nun taken hostage by Islamic militants in Mali in 2017.

Becciu said Pope Francis authorized up to 1 million euros to liberate the nun.

At the Vatican tribunal, Marogna was sentenced to three years and nine months in prison for her role.

Prosecutors also sought damages of over 400 million euros from Marogna and Becciu to try to recover the estimated 200 million euros they claim the Holy See lost in the bad deals.

The Vatican court ordered the confiscation of 166 million euros, roughly $181 million, from the pair and the payment of civil damages to Vatican offices of 200 million euros, or about $218 million.

Becciu's former secretary, Monsignor Mauro Carlino, was completely acquitted.

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Former chair of Colorado GOP accused of embezzling $280k from pro-Trump PAC



The former head of the Colorado Republican Party has been hit with a complaint that he allegedly siphoned off nearly $280,000 for his own personal use from a political action committee that supported former President Donald Trump.

What are the details?

Colorado Newsline reported that Ryan Call, an attorney who served as Colorado's two-term GOP chair from 2011 to 2015, is accused of embezzling $278,169.45 from Trump super PAC "Rebuilding America Now" between 2016 and 2019.

The outlet reported that Call, who did not return multiple requests for comment, is no longer licensed to practice law in Colorado and purchased a home in Utah following his termination by Denver law practice Hale Westfall in 2019.

The complaint also claims that Call did not report a $1 million contribution from Los Angeles billionaire Geoffrey Palmer for more than two years after receiving it in October of 2016.

The Hill noted that the complaint, filed June 2 by the Office of Attorney Regulation Counsel, "alleges that Call 'knowingly misappropriated' funds for the PAC." It also cites 37 separate times Call allegedly transferred contributions to himself in transactions spanning from Sept. 2016 to Jan 2019.

According to KUSA-TV, "Rebuilding America Now" was founded by former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort and prominent pro-Trump real estate investor Tom Barrack.

The Colorado station noted that Call opposed Trump for re-election in 2020.

Retired nun pleads guilty to embezzling more than $800k from school — in part to fund gambling habit



A now-retired nun has pleaded guilty to stealing more than $800,000 from the St. James Catholic School in Torrance, California, from 2008 to 2018, the last decade of her 28-year tenure as principal of the institution.

Sister Kreuper — who took a vow of poverty — confessed to using the embezzled funds to pay for personal expenses, including her gambling habit.

What are the details?

Kreuper, 79, was charged Tuesday with one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering, and in a plea agreement the same day pleaded guilty to both charges, the Associated Press reported.

According to the outlet, "Kreuper acknowledged diverting money to pay for personal expenses that included credit card charges and 'large gambling expenses incurred at casinos,' the U.S. attorney's office said."

She admitted to taking a total of $835,000 in donations from the elementary school, and faces up to 40 years in federal prison.

KCAL-TV reported:

[Kreuper] also admitted in the plea agreement to falsifying monthly and annual reports to the school's administration to cover up the fraudulent conduct and "lulled St. James School and the Administration into believing that the school's finances were being properly accounted for and its financial assets properly safeguarded, which, in turn, allowed defendant Kreuper to maintain her access and control of the school's finances and accounts and, thus, continue operating the fraudulent scheme."

Kreuper is also accused of directing St. James employees to alter and destroy financial records during a school audit.

But she was not alone in the scheme.

St. James teacher Lana Chang admitted along with Kreuper to the embezzlement in 2018, following each of their retirements earlier that year. The pair confessed to using the funds for gambling excursions to Las Vegas and other spending sprees.

According to Newstalk.com, the school indicated in a letter to parents at the time that they did not want to pursue criminal charges against the duo, after they both expressed "desire and inten[t] to make complete restitution to St. James School."

The school soon had a change of heart following pushback.

Parents and alumni of St. James told KTTV-TV in late 2018 that they hoped the school followed through with pursuing criminal complaints against Kreuper and Chang. One parent told the outlet of the situation: "It's crazy. It's very disturbing."

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