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Inside the VaticanDecember 20, 2023
Vatican Judge Giuseppe Pignatone listens during the third session of the trial of six defendants -- including Cardinal Angelo Becciu -- accused of financial crimes at the Vatican City State criminal court Nov. 17, 2021. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)

A Vatican tribunal has sentenced Cardinal Angelo Becciu to five and a half years in prison, the first such sentence in at least 500 years.

This week on Inside the Vatican, veteran Vatican correspondent Gerard O’Connell and host Colleen Dulle explain the financial scandal that led to the trial, the dramatic revelations that emerged throughout it, and what happens next—both to Cardinal Becciu and with Pope Francis’ financial and judicial reforms.

Recapping the trial, Gerry says, "This is all the ingredients for a Netflix film or Dan Brown novel.”

[Listen and subscribe to “Inside the Vatican” on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.]

In the second half of the show, Colleen and Gerry analyze some of the key issues and questions that have arisen around the trial. With Pope Francis serving as absolute monarch and supreme legislator of Vatican City intervening personally in this case, did defendants really get a fair trial? Will anyone actually serve their jail sentences?

Links from the show

Vatican tribunal sentences Cardinal Becciu to prison for financial crimes

Verdicts are expected tomorrow in Vatican’s ‘trial of the century.’ Here’s what you need to know.

Podcast: The Vatican’s mega-trial of the century—and the cardinal at the center of it

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