Paolo Gabriele (right) is seen here in court
Pope Benedict XVI's former butler has entered no plea at the start of his trial in the Vatican on charges of aggravated theft.
Paolo Gabriele, 46, admitted earlier to leaking confidential documents to expose "evil and corruption".
The court threw out some of the more sensitive evidence gathered in the course of the investigation.
Saturday's session of the court dealt with procedural issues and the trial was adjourned until Tuesday.
While technically Mr Gabriele faces up to four years in prison if found guilty, he could be pardoned by the Pope.
The court decided that his fellow defendant, Vatican computer technician Claudio Sciarpelletti, would be tried separately for aiding and abetting a crime. He had exerted his right to stay away from the hearing.
If he is jailed, Mr Gabriele will serve his sentence in an Italian prison, as Vatican City has no long-term detention facilities on its territory.
Mr Gabriele was the Pope's trusted servant for years and held the keys to the papal apartments.
Many of the letters and other documents he took from the pontiff's desk were published in a book by an Italian investigative journalist in May.
The so-called "Vatileaks" scandal has sparked allegations of corruption and internal conflicts at the Holy See.
No comments:
Post a Comment