The Australian – AAP, July 06, 2013
Italian investigators say the Vatican bank operated in a way that facilitated money laundering. Source: AAP |
The bank,
officially known as the Institute for Works of Religion (IOR in Italian) did
not carry out enough checks on its clients, and account holders were allowed to
transfer large sums on behalf of others.
"There
is a high risk that the way the IOR operates, without specifying its real
clients, it can be used as a screen to hide illegal operations,"
prosecutors wrote in a document that was quoted by Corriere della Sera.
They also
faulted Italian banks that accepted transfers from the IOR for failing to probe
the origin of the money, which is then moved into other banks.
"The
IOR can easily become a channel for the laundering of money with a criminal
origin, they said.
They also
contradicted IOR statements that its account holders are all religious
congregations or clergy.
"There
are also private individuals who, because they enjoy a particular relationship
with the Holy See, can deposit money and open accounts," they said.
The
investigation centred on a 23 million euro ($A32.73 million) transfer made from
the Vatican bank to Italian lender Credito Artigiano in September 2010.
Three
million euros were then sent on to Banca del Fucino and 20 million to JP Morgan
Frankfurt.
The
transfer was signed off by IOR's then director general Paolo Cipriani and his
deputy Massimo Tulli, who both resigned last week.
Prosecutors
are set to file charges against them.
La
Repubblica said the two were also being accused over a dozen other smaller
transfers to JP Morgan.
Pope
Francis has set up a committee to investigate the bank and is said to be
planning a major shake-up of the scandal-ridden institution as part of broader
reforms of the Vatican bureaucracy.
The Vatican
is reforming its finances in order to be included on a "white list"
of states that respect international rules against money laundering.
Italian
police last month arrested a senior cleric on suspicion of money laundering and
fraud for allegedly plotting to smuggle millions of euros into Italy.
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