VATICAN CITY (RNS) The Vatican on Monday (Nov. 2) announced the arrest of two people in connection with the alleged theft of leaked confidential documents, the first such case since the “Vatileaks” scandal saw the papal butler jailed for leaking Holy See secrets.
Spanish priest Lucio Angel Vallejo Balda was arrested over the weekend, along with Italian laywoman Francesca Chaouqui, following an investigation by the Vatican’s police force. Both had been part of a temporary commission established by Pope Francis in 2013 to advise the pontiff on how to overhaul the Holy See administration.
Chaouqui, 33, a public relations expert, was released on Monday after agreeing to cooperate with investigators, but Vallejo Balda remained in custody. Vallejo Balda, 54, was believed to be the highest-ranking member of the Vatican’s central bureaucracy, known as the Curia, ever to have been arrested, according to Reuters.
The Vatican did not detail the content of the leaked documents, although two books being released this month suggest they are related to Holy See finances and Francis’ administrative overhaul.
VATICAN CITY (RNS) The Vatican on Monday (Nov. 2) announced the arrest of two people in connection with the alleged theft of leaked confidential documents, the first such case since the “Vatileaks” scandal saw the papal butler jailed for leaking Holy See secrets.
Spanish priest Lucio Angel Vallejo Balda was arrested over the weekend, along with Italian laywoman Francesca Chaouqui, following an investigation by the Vatican’s police force. Both had been part of a temporary commission established by Pope Francis in 2013 to advise the pontiff on how to overhaul the Holy See administration.
Chaouqui, 33, a public relations expert, was released on Monday after agreeing to cooperate with investigators, but Vallejo Balda remained in custody. Vallejo Balda, 54, was believed to be the highest-ranking member of the Vatican’s central bureaucracy, known as the Curia, ever to have been arrested, according to Reuters.
The Vatican did not detail the content of the leaked documents, although two books being released this month suggest they are related to Holy See finances and Francis’ administrative overhaul.
by Rosie Scammell
