Former Vatican Envoy to France Luigi Ventura Convicted of Sexual Assault, World News

France24 News
December 16, 2020

https://www.fr24news.com/a/2020/12/former-vatican-envoy-to-france-luigi-ventura-convicted-of-sexual-assault-world-news.html


A Paris court on Wednesday sentenced former Vatican ambassador to France Luigi Ventura to an eight-month suspended prison sentence after being convicted of sexual assault against five men.

Also read: How the Vatican covered up on Archbishop Theodore McCarrick’s teenage sexual assault case

The Vatican had previously lifted Ventura’s immunity while on trial. The court ordered Ventura to pay 13,000 euros in damages and he will now appear on sex offenders Register.

Former Vatican Ambassador to France was not present during the sentencing, nor was he present during the proceedings after his lawyers told the court that his doctor advised him against traveling from Italy to France due to the risks for health in the middle of coronavirus pandemic.

Ventura, 75, had resigned from the Vatican last year after reaching retirement age. He had been stationed in Paris since 2009.

The prosecution had previously requested a 10-month suspended prison sentence. The allegations against him first surfaced in February 2019 after someone accused him of touching his butt three times during a New Years ceremony in January 2019.

Four other men later presented similar allegations against Ventura, including a senior foreign ministry official.