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"Clearly to restore a climate of serenity and trust is a process,it is not something that can be solved in a few days," said FatherFederico Lombardi, the Vatican's chief spokesman. "But we have started and we are moving ahead," he said. Paolo Gabriele, 46, the papal butler arrested on May 23 as part ofa investigation into the "Vatileaks" scandal, was questioned byVatican prosecutor Piero Antonio Bonnet for the second straight dayon Wednesday in the tiny city-state's tribunal. At the same time that Bonnet was grilling Gabriele in the tribunal,Pope Benedict was holding his weekly general audience just hundredsof meters (yards) away in St. Peter's Square. Lombardi acknowledged that the scandal had shaken confidence amongthose who live and work within the walls of the secretive 108-acrecity-state, although he said the pope was carrying out hisfunctions "in a normal and efficient way". Gabriele, who was charged with aggravated theft after papaldocuments were found in his apartment in the Vatican, wasquestioned in the presence of his two lawyers and of NicolaPicardi, another high-ranking Vatican judicial official known asthe "promoter of justice". Bonnet must now decide whether to order Gabriele to stand trial andis also considering a request by Gabriele's lawyers for him to belet out of a "safe room" where he is being held at the Vaticanpolice station and be placed under house arrest. Many Vatican insiders believe the butler, who served the pope hismeals, helped him dress and rode in the front seat of thepopemobile, could not have acted alone and may be a pawn in a muchwider power struggle between cardinals. The leaks scandal began in January and came to a head last monthwhen, in the space of a few days, the head of the Vatican bank wasabruptly dismissed, Gabriele was arrested and a book containing atrove of private Vatican correspondence was published. The documents allege corruption in the Vatican's business dealingswith Italian companies, which were paid inflated prices for work inthe Vatican, rivalries among cardinals and clashes over themanagement of the Vatican's bank, the IOR. Gabriele, who has been visited in jail by his wife and has beenallowed to attend mass, could be held for up to 100 days inpre-trial custody. Aggravated theft carries a jail sentence of up to six years, butother offences, such as revealing state secrets, could be added tothe list of charges during the investigation. Because the Vatican has no jail, Gabriele would serve his sentencein an Italian prison, although most commentators believe the popewould pardon him if he were found guilty. Vatican investigators and a commission of cardinals have beenhunting for other informants but Lombardi said that Gabrieleremained the only person under investigation so far. (Additional reporting by Philip Pullella; Editing by Robin Pomeroy). I am an expert from digital-metaldetector.com, while we provides the quality product, such as Hand Held Metal Detector Manufacturer , Portable Metal Detector Manufacturer, Walk Through Metal Detector,and more.
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