Butler acted ‘out of love’ for Benedict

Paolo Gabriele, the papal butler held on suspicion of leaking documents alleging corruption in the Vatican, was driven by his love for Pope Benedict XVI and a desire to help clean up the Catholic Church, his lawyer said.

The lawyer, Carlo Fusco, told a news conference that Mr Gabriele had acted alone in the so-called “Vatileaks” scandal and was not part of any wider plot, saying he expected a Vatican magistrate to order a trial for him soon.

The 46-year-old butler’s arrest on May 23 caused an international furore after police found confidential papers in his apartment inside the Vatican — a dramatic twist that threw the global media spotlight on an institution battling to defend its reputation from allegations of graft.