Cardinal sentenced to five and a half years in historic Vatican fraud trial

A Vatican court sentenced a once powerful Italian cardinal to five and a half years in jail for financial crimes following a historic trial.

Angelo Becciu, 75, a former adviser to Pope Francis who was once considered a papal contender himself, was the most senior clergyman in the Catholic Church to face a Vatican criminal court and faced accusations of embezzlement, abuse of office and witness tampering. In addition to his jail sentence, Becciu was handed a fine of 8,000 euros and banned permanently from public office.