The first hearing in the process initiated by the former financial controllers will take place on the afternoon of the 25th, at the court of Vatican City.
Libero Milone, with extensive experience in the financial field, had been appointed by Pope Francis in May 2015 as the first accountant of the accounts of the Holy See, with the aim of overseeing the finances and making them more transparent.
In June 2017, the Vatican decided to fire Milone and his collaborator Panicco, alleging they had gone beyond their duties by illegally investigating the private lives of their superiors in the papal state.
The two former accountants are demanding compensation of €9,278,000 for damages from the Vatican Secretariat of State, headed by Cardinal Pietro Parolín, and the Office of the Auditor General.
The Vatican has been investigating Milone for embezzlement since the spring of 2022.
In this legal war, Milone and Panicco claim they were forced to resign and filed this action with the intention of “clarifying what happened and obtaining fair compensation for the harm suffered,” as they stated to the press stated.
The two accuse the then deputy secretary of state, Cardinal Angelo Becciu, of removing them from office after discovering illegalities in Vatican finances.
Becciu is the main defendant in another Vatican trial investigating alleged irregularities and the fraudulent sale of a building in London, along with nine other people, including businessmen and officials of the Holy See.
Source: DN
