European evaluators visit Vatican mired in financial scandal

ROME (AP) — European anti-money laundering evaluators are beginning a periodic visit to the Vatican amid a mounting financial scandal that has cost a half-dozen people their jobs, including one of the Holy See’s most powerful cardinals.

For the next two weeks, the Council of Europe’s Moneyval team will be checking the Vatican’s compliance with international norms to fight money laundering and terror financing.

Moneyval has generally given the Holy See positive to mixed reviews in its periodic evaluations.

Its main criticism in recent years has been directed against the Vatican’s criminal tribunal, which it has faulted for failing to prosecute many cases despite receiving dozens of suspicious transaction reports from the Vatican’s financial watchdog.