ITALY
Vatican Insider
The dramatic statement of the banker whose home in Piacenza was searched at the crack of dawn
Andrea Tornielli
Piacenza
It was still pitch black in the building’s spacious internal court yard, which resembled a Vatican cloister, when Ettore Gotti Tedeschi descended the last step of the enormous flight of stairs, suitcase in hand, and approached his car. He was supposed to leave for Milan before dawn, as usual. A fifty minute car journey, a flick through the newspapers and mass at 8. Then in the afternoon, he was meant to get the train to Rome. Among the letters he had with him, was a memorial he intended to deliver to Benedict XVI: a reconstruction of the recent events that led to his controversial dismissal from the Vatican Bank (IOR).
But when he got to the car, there were four men waiting for him. The warrant officer slipped his hand into his pocket and extracted his police badge. It all happened so quickly that Gotti Tedeschi thought they had come to shoot him.
For a fraction of a second, God’s former banker feared the worst. Then, he was shown a search warrant and told that he would have to change his plans for the day and cancel his trip to Rome. Gotti Tedeschi, with his sallow face, took a quick look at the piece of paper. Then he called out to his wife: “Francesca!”
The Vatican bank board’s shocking no-confidence vote in Gotti Tedeschi two weeks ago, was followed by a harsh communiqué that was not in keeping with the Holy See’s style. A document that was both morally and professionally devastating. And now this new unexpected blow. A search warrant was issued but the Vatican bank’s former head was not under investigation.
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