Italian police probe Vatican bank officials

JUST when the Catholic Church didn’t need another scandal, Italian authorities have seized €23 million from a Vatican bank account and begun investigating top officials of the Vatican bank in connection with a money laundering probe.

The Vatican said it was “perplexed and surprised” by the investigation.

Italian financial police seized the money as a precaution yesterday and prosecutors placed the Vatican bank’s director general and its chairman, Ettore Gotti Tedeschi, who speaks frequently about morality in financing, under investigation for alleged mistakes linked to violations of Italy’s anti-laundering laws.