VATICAN CITY
BBC News
The Vatican has charged five people, including two journalists and a top priest or monsignor, over the leaking and publication of secret documents.
The documents were cited in two books, by journalists Emiliano Fittipaldi and Gianluigi Nuzzi, alleging misspending and corruption at the Vatican.
The journalists deny claims that they exerted pressure to obtain information.
Two members of a papal commission advising on economic reform, and an assistant, were also charged.
Monsignor Lucio Vallejo Balda, and his colleague on the commission, public relations expert Francesca Chaouqui, were arrested early in November.
The books, “Merchants in the Temple” by Mr Nuzzi and “Avarice” by Mr Fittipaldi, included details of alleged corruption, theft and uncontrolled spending in the Holy See.
In a statement, the Vatican said magistrates “notified the accused and their lawyers of the charges filed… for the unlawful disclosure of information and confidential documents”.
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