Suspicious neighbors complained to police about the irregular comings and goings at an apartment right next to St. Peter’s Basilica where the secretary of one of Pope Francis’s top advisers has been living. When officers showed up to investigate, they reportedly discovered drugs, along with a group of men participating in sexual activity.
Monsignor Luigi Capozzi was arrested and brought in for questioning. Reports say Capozzi is a 49-year-old priest who serves as secretary to key papal aide Cardinal Francesco Coccopalmerio, who is in charge of the Pontifical Council for the Interpretation of Legal Texts. Coccopalmerio once recommended that Capozzi be promoted to bishop, but this arrest and two alleged drug overdoses in the past could well put an end to such consideration.
Capozzi was reportedly so high on cocaine when he was arrested that he had to be hospitalized in Rome to detoxify. He is now holed up in an Italian convent, where he is said to be undergoing a spiritual retreat. He is still listed on the Pontifical Council for the Interpretation of Legal Texts’ website as an active staff member.
Despite going against the teachings of the Catholic church, private same-sex activity is not a criminal offense in Vatican City, so it is likely that any criminal charges stemming from the arrest would be related to the drugs that were found on the scene.
Priest used Vatican license plates and convenient apartment location to skirt the law
Reports say that Capozzi has been engaging in this behavior for quite some time. He avoided police suspicion by using a BMW with Holy See license plates, making him essentially immune to being stopped and searched. This allowed him to transport cocaine to his orgies, which are said to have taken place frequently, without being subject to police stops.
Moreover, the building in question has a separate entrance leading from Italian territory outside the walls of the Vatican and outside the control of the Swiss Guard and Vatican police right into Vatican City. The Italian news service Il Fatto Quotidiano says this makes it the ideal place to carry out illicit activity because people can enter the Vatican from Italy through the building without being subjected to an inspection and having their names recorded.
Vatican sex scandals continue to pile up
This is just the latest raft of bad publicity for the Vatican, which has been tarnished by wide-reaching sex scandals involving priests, cardinals and the churches themselves. In one high-profile case, Cardinal George Pell, who was appointed to help clean up finances in the Vatican, is about to stand trial in Australia on child sex abuse charges. Meanwhile, a slew of accusations hit the Vatican in March implicating priests in prostitution, orgies, and porn videos. Making matters worse is the fact that the apartment that hosted the drug-fueled gay sex orgy belongs to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, which is tasked with investigating clerical sexual abuse. Critics of Pope Francis believe he has chosen the wrong people to hold key positions.
LifeSiteNews reports that The Lepanto Institute’s Michael Hichborn believes “it is unlikely to the point of absurdity that Cardinal Coccopalmerio was unaware of Msgr. Capozzi's disgusting activities.” He added that he suspects that many who work in the Vatican were aware of the activity and that other clergy take part in similar behavior.
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