In 2018, Francis removed Becciu from his role as “substitute,” the Vatican equivalent of papal chief of staff, to head the Vatican agency that oversees the process of making saints. In September 2020, Francis stripped Becciu of his Vatican positions and cardinal rights, except for his titles, amid media reports that Becciu had funneled funds belonging to the Holy See to relatives and friends.
In a statement on Thursday, Becciu’s legal representatives said they intend to answer what they called Milone’s “completely unfounded reconstructions” with legal action of their own.
“The cardinal clarified that he only carried out an order by the Holy Father, who informed him that Dr. Milone no longer enjoyed his trust, and therefore invited him to hand in his resignation,” the statement read.
Becciu’s lawyers cited statements by the Vatican declaring that Milone was suspected of “illegal surveillance” into the private lives of Vatican officials and denied that the cardinal interfered with external audits into the Vatican’s Secretariat of State.
At his meeting with journalists, Milone said the Secretariat of State resisted his efforts to audit the department’s financial situation. “Despite our urgent requests to the Secretariat of State to provide more information regarding these investments, including the London purchase, no data has ever been transmitted to us and, after three years, the Sloane Avenue scandal exploded!” he said, referring to the London property by its address.
In addition, Milone said he has proof that several other Vatican offices concealed transactions or obstructed auditors’ attempts to see real estate and investment portfolios. Milone also pointed to significant anomalies in the management of funds at the troubled Catholic pediatric hospital Bambino Gesù.
This article originally appeared here.
