Vatican Whisks Another Alleged Pervert Priest to Safety—This One From Its D.C. Embassy

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Vatican Whisks Another Alleged Pervert Priest to Safety—This One From Its D.C. Embassy

The U.S. State Department asked that immunity be lifted on a priest over child pornography charges. The Vatican responded by swooping the alleged pervert back to Rome.

Barbie Latza Nadeau

09.15.17 4:20 PM ET

ROME—Pope Francis very famously doesn’t like walls, except, it seems, when they come in handy. At least that’s the impression that the Holy See is giving with its response to an August 21 request by the U.S. State Department to lift diplomatic immunity to charge a yet unnamed priest suspected of collecting child pornography. The accused priest, who was described as "high ranking" by the Associated Press, was instead whisked back to Rome where he is now safe from secular prosecution inside the Vatican’s fortified walls.

The New York Times, citing some Italian media and an unnamed American source familiar with the investigation, identified the perpetrator as 44-year-old Italian Carlo Alberto Capella, who has been a priest since 1993 and part of the Vatican’s diplomatic corps since 2004. Records show he worked closely with the Vatican’s secretariat for the economy focused on the Vatican’s often murky financial affairs.

The Vatican Press Office will not confirm the identity of the priest, but issued a statement Friday morning with scant details. “The Holy See, following the practice of sovereign states, recalled the priest in question, who is currently in Vatican City,” the statement says. “Having received such information from the United States government, the Secretariat of State transmitted this information to the Promoter of Justice of the Vatican Tribunal. The Promoter of Justice opened an investigation and has already commenced international collaboration to obtain elements relative to the case. It should be noted that, as provided by the laws in force applicable to all preliminary inquiries, the investigations carried by the Promoter of Justice are subject to investigative confidentiality.”
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In other words, same old story.

The Vatican has shown a remarkable capacity for opacity when it comes to the sinister crimes of clerical child sex abuse. Granted, this priest is not known to be accused of directly abusing children. But if he is in possession of child pornography, as the United States alleges, he might as well be, since child pornography is almost always filmed under horrific circumstances.

A spokesperson for the State Department told Reuters that they hoped the pope would keep his promise to “act decisively with regard to cases of sexual abuse.”

“The United States encourages the Holy See to ensure full implementation of its reforms and policies designed to protect minors and provide justice regarding allegations,” the spokesperson said.