Vatican official arrested on suspicion of corruption, Rome prosecutor says

ROME
CNN

By Hada Messia and Laura Smith-Spark, CNN
June 28, 2013

Rome (CNN) — A Vatican official, a financial broker and a former secret service police officer were arrested Friday on suspicion of corruption over an alleged attempt to smuggle a huge sum of cash into Italy, Rome’s prosecutor said.

The official, Monsignor Nunzio Scarano, works as a financial analyst in the Vatican office that administers Vatican-owned property.

The archdiocese of Salerno, in southern Italy, issued a statement saying media reports identifying him as a bishop there were incorrect.

Prosecutor Nello Rossi told reporters the three suspects could face corruption charges, with Scarano also facing a possible count of defamation.

He stressed that the investigation is ongoing and that money laundering is not among the possible charges based on what investigators have uncovered so far.

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