Vatican trial places pope, top aide at center of London deal

By NICOLE WINFIELD
Associated Press

VATICAN CITY (AP) — The former director of the Vatican’s financial watchdog agency has testified that Pope Francis asked him to help the Vatican secretariat of state get full control of a London property at the center of a Vatican financial trial. The testimony Wednesday by Tommaso di Ruzza once again put the pope and his top deputies in the spotlight for their roles in the problematic deal. Vatican prosecutors have accused brokers and Vatican officials of fleecing the Holy See of millions of euros in fees and then extorting the Vatican of 15 million euros to get control of the London property. Di Ruzza testified Wednesday he didn’t have the authority to block the 15 million euro payment, nor sufficient evidence to flag it to Vatican prosecutors as suspicious.