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Former Vatican Diplomat Convicted on Child Porn Charges

The former Holy See diplomat had sought leniency, arguing his actions were just a “bump in the road” of his priestly career.

The Vatican tribunal on Saturday convicted a former Holy See diplomat on child pornography charges and sentenced him to five years in prison for what he argued was just a “bump in the road” in his priestly career. After being recalled from the Vatican’s embassy in Washington last year over the accusations, Monsignor Carlo Capella had admitted to viewing child pornography but attributed his actions to “fragility” brought on by a recent job transfer. In the first trial of its kind inside the Vatican, Tribunal President Giuseppe Dalla Torre on Saturday said Capella continued to access the material even after he was recalled. Prosecutors had pushed for a sentence of five years and nine months, citing the “great” number of illicit images he viewed and shared.