POPE KILLED IN VATICAN RESIDENCE

No prices for guessing who was a common friend of the sizE suspects in the murder of Pope Paul.

Pope John Paul I
AKA Albino Luciani

Born: 17-Oct-1912
Birthplace: Forno di Canale, Italy
Died: 28-Sep-1978
Location of death: Rome, Italy
Cause of death: Heart Failure
Remains: Buried, St. Peter’s Basilica, Vatican City

Gender: Male
Religion: Roman Catholic
Race or Ethnicity: White
Occupation: Religion

Nationality: Italy
Executive summary: Pope for 33 days, in summer 1978

Father: Giovanni Luciani
Mother: Bortola Tancon
Brother: Edoardo
Sister: Nina
Brother: Federico (d.)

Teacher: Minerary Technical Institute
Theological: PhD Theology, Pontifical Gregorian University, Rome, Italy (1947)

Roman Catholic Pope 26-Aug-1978 to 28-Sep-1978
Tonsillectomy
Risk Factors: Arthritis

A brief review of “In God’s Name: an Investigation into the Murder of Pope John Paul I” by David A. Yallop.

The author, a secularist, who has written other “investigative reporting” crime books, makes the case for the murder of Albino Luciani (Pope John Paul I) in 1978 after only 33 days in office. Motive: money and its concomitant – power.

BACKGROUND

1929. Lateran Treaty conducted between Benito Mussolini and Pope Pius XI gave the church a variety of protections: 1) the Holy See recognized as a sovereign state; 2) diplomatic immunity and accompanying privileges; 3) exemption from paying taxes for its properties and citizens; 4) Catholic religion to be taught in all high schools in Italy; 5) institution of marriage placed under canon law, thus ruling out divorce; 5)payment by the Italian government of 750 million fire and Consolidated 5 percent State Bonds (nominal value I billion lire). To oversee this financial windfall, Pius XI appointed Bernardino Nogara. Until 1830 the church had had an official ban on usury (all gains from money lending). At the time of the Lateran Treaty the definition of usury was changed to mean “lending money at exorbitant rates.” Nogara took the job under two conditions: 1) his investment decisions were to be totally free of any doctrinal or religious considerations; and 2) he would be free to invest Vatican funds anywhere in the world. Nogara held this position until 1954, but continued advising the Vatican till his death in 1958. Pp. 92-98.

Albino Luciani (John Paul I) born October 17, 1912, Canale d’Agordo, north of Venice, Italy. He had a pious mother and a Socialist father.

In 1923 he entered seminary at the age of 11, and graduated to the major seminary at Benuno. In 1935 he was ordained a priest in San Pietro, Belluno, and appointed curate in forno di Canale, and in 1937 he was appointed vice-rector at his old seminary in Befluno.

In 1941 he decided to get a doctorate in theology and went to the Gregorian University in Rome. His thesis was The Origin of the Human Soul According to Antonio Rosmini, an attempt to refute Rosmini who wrote that the church suffered from 5 evils: social remoteness of the clergy from the people; low standard of education of priests; disunity and acrimony among the bishops; dependence of lay appointments upon secular authorities and church ownership of property and enslavement to wealth.

(Points 1 and 5 were to be a lifelong preoccupation for Luciani. This, and his interest in Vatican II and liberalizing Rome’s stand on birth control, put him in the moderate/liberal camp of the Catholic church. Whatever his private positions, he remained a papal loyalist.)

In 1946, his thesis was published and doctorate awarded magna cum laude. In 1947, he became pro-vicar-general of the diocese. In 1949, he became responsible for catechetics in preparation for a eucharistic congress that year in Belluno. In conjunction with this, he published Catechsi in Briciole (Crumbs from the Catechism). Luciani was thought to be one of the best catechism teachers of the century. In 1958, he was ordained bishop of Vittorio Veneto.

On Oct. 11, 1962, Pope John XXIII convened the Second Second Vatican Council (Vatican II). Luciani “totally absorbed Vatican Council II. He had the council in his blood. He knew the documents by heart. Further, he implemented the documents.” p.21.

On June 23, 1963 Pope John XXIII died.

Pope Paul VI, the new pope, enlarged the Pontifical Commission of the Family set up by his predecessor. There was majority sentiment to change the church’s stand on birth control.

In 1968, Luciani was asked to write a report on artificial contraception for the pope’s consideration. His conclusion was that the pope should approve an anovulant pill developed by Professor Pincus – that this should become the Catholic birth-control pill.

Humanae Vitae published July 25, 1968. Although not an “infallible document,” the position of the church remained unchanged against artificial contraception. Only abstinence and rhythm acceptable.

Luciani was appointed Archbishop of Venice, December 15, 1969.

In 1972, Banco Cattolica del Veneto (called the “priests’ bank” because it made low interest loans to the clergy), in which the Vatican Bank owned 51 percent interest, was sold by Vatican Bank President, Paul Marcinkus, to Roberto Calvi of Banco Ambrosiano in Milan. Luciani’s investigation of Marcinkus and Calvi led to another name, Michele Sindona, a Sicilian banker, headquartered in Milan. Sindona had met Pope Paul VI when the pope was Archbishop Montini of Milan. When Montini became pope, Sindona became a lay financial advisor to the Vatican. Luciani learned the sale of the BCDV had been an illegal transaction done to profit the three principals involved. The bishops and clergy of the Veneto were incensed, but nothing could be done as Marcinkus and Sindona were very close to, and protected by, the pope. The pope noticed and appreciated Luciani’s loyalty in not making a huge stink over the sale of the BCDV. pp. 35-40, 127-128, 143-145.

In 1973, Pope Paul VI made him a Cardinal (of Venice), and Luciani published Illustrissimi, a series of letters on moral points, addressed to various literary and historical characters. These first appeared as magazine and newspaper articles.

On Aug. 6, 1987. Pope Paul VI died.

On Aug. 27, 1978 Luciani (not a front runner) was elected pope on the fourth ballot. He took the name of his two predecessors, becoming John Paul I.

Cardinal Jean Villot, Pope Paul’s Secretary of State, is asked to stay on temporarily for the new pope and to begin an immediate investigation into the financial operations of the Vatican – with particular emphasis on the Istituto per le Opere di Religione (IOR) aka Vatican Bank.

Aug. 31, 1978. Il Mondo (economic periodical), in an open letter to the new pope, makes an appeal to clean up the Vatican Bank.

The Curia began immediately to falsify Pope John Paul I’s true stand on birth control. This was done to make it more difficult for him to re-open the Humanae Vitae dialogue.

At the top of the list of reforms the new pope wished to make were “altering radically the Vatican’s relationship with capitalism and alleviating the suffering that had stemmed directly from Humanae Vitae.” P. 170. (See his 1941 doctoral dissertation.)

In Sept. 1978, Mino Pecorelli, a journalist and disgruntled P2 member ran an article, “The Great Vatican Lodge, ” giving names of 121 alleged Masons. The list was largely comprised of cardinals, bishops, and high-ranking prelates. The names of Jean Villot, his Secretary of State, Paul Marcinkus, head of the Vatican Bank, and Pasquale Macchi, his personal secretary were all on the list. The pope learned that Jean Villot had been among those strongly favoring a relaxation of the canon rule that any Roman Catholic who became a Freemason was automatically excommunicated.

On Sept. 27, 1978, Pope John Paul I made the decision to once again give Cardinal Cody of Chicago the opportunity to resign due to ill health (to save face). If he refused, he was to be assigned a coadjutor. No protesting; this time; it was to be done!

On Sept. 27, JPI asked Cardinal Baggio to take the position he vacated in Venice. Baggio refuses. (Baggio’s name was on “The Great Vatican Lodge ” list of Freemasons.) Pp.208-209.

On Sept. 28, JPI discusses the Vatican Bank situation with his Secretary of State, Jean Villot. Villot has already submitted a preliminary report. The pope made it clear that he had no intention of leaving Marcinkus in Vatican City, let alone the Vatican Bank. Marcinkus was to be removed immediately – the following day! A suitable post was to be found for him in Chicago once the Cardinal Cody problem had been solved. Pp.210-211. On the same day, Villot learns that he is to be replaced as Secretary of State.

Sometime between 9:30 p.m. Sept. 28 and 4:30 a.m., Sept. 29, Pope John Paul I was (according to Yallop) murdered. He had been pope for 33 days. (The only other pope to serve less time was Pope Leo XI who served for 17 days and was also probably poisoned.)

The probable method of murder was tampering with the Pope’s medications – either his liquid Effortil or Cortiplex injections (both taken for low blood pressure). Security around the pope was very lax.

The time of death was never established. An autopsy was never performed. The death certificate (which was not signed) indicated heart failure as the probable cause. Embalming (in which no blood was removed) was performed within 14 hours of finding the body; Italian law specifies it is not to be done within 24.

THE SIX PRINCIPAL SUSPECTS:

Paul Casimir Marcinkus (nickname: The Gorilla)

He was born January 15, 1922 in Cicero, Illinois, and ordained a priest in 1947. He received a Doctorate in canon law from Gregorian University, Rome and was posted to the English section of the Vatican Secretary of State’s office, Rome.

After tours of duty in Canada and Bolivia, in 1959 he was appointed to the Secretary of State’s department, Rome.

In 1964 he became the bodyguard to Pope Paul VI, acquiring the nickname, “The Gorilla.” After accompanying the pope on several trips he had become also a personal translator and security advisor. Marcinkus became personal friends with the pope’s secretary, Father Pasquale Macchi.

Several years later, he was made a bishop by Pope Paul VI and immediately made secretary of the Vatican Bank. Marcinkus had no previous banking experience! Pp. 102-105.

In 1973 he was investigated by the F.B.I. for direct involvement in money laundering of mafia money through the Vatican Bank.

On Sept. 28, 1978 Marcinkus found that he was to be replaced as head of the Vatican Bank by Msgr. Abbo on September 29.

Sept. 29. 6:45 a.m. Marcinkus in the courtyard near the Vatican Bank is told that Pope Jean Paul I had been found dead. Marcinkus’s residence was not inside the Vatican; it’s a 20 minute drive away. He was not known to be an early riser. His presence in the Vatican at that hour was never explained.

On Sept. 28, 1981, Pope John Paul II promoted Marcinkus to archbishop and pro-president of the Pontifical Commission for the State of Vatican City (a virtual governorship). He retained his post as head of the Vatican Bank.

Despite motive and access, Yallop does not place Marcinkus high on the suspect list.

Michele Sindona (nickname: The Shark)

He was born May 8, 1920 in Sicily, where he received a law degree from Messina University. During WWII, he bought food on the black market in Palermo and smuggled it (with Mafia aid) to Messina.

In 1946 he left Sicily for Milan with letters of introduction from the archbishop of Messina. In Milan he worked for a business consultancy and accounting firm; his specialty was working through Italy’s complex tax laws. He had Mafia clients and was trusted as a Sicilian. According to Yallop, Sindona was, himself, a Mafia member. P.308.

In 1957, Sindona was approached by the Gambino family and their Sicilian cousins, the Inzerillos, to launder money they were beginning to make in heroin. Shortly after this meeting, Sindona bought his first bank. Through the 1960’s, Sindona continued to buy up banks, to launder money for the Mafia, and to forge close financial links with the Vatican. Pp. 106-113.

Chosen by Pope Paul VI to act as a financial advisor to the Vatican and to move some of the Vatican money out of Italy (for tax and public relations reasons). In 1973, Prime Minister Andreotti hailed Sindona as “the savior of the lira,” and the U.S. ambassador named him “Man of the Year.”

In 1974, Sindona’s house of cards began to fall apart with bank failures in Europe and the U.S. (Franklin National Bank of N.Y. being the most spectacular), and massive losses for the Vatican Bank. An arrest warrant is issued for Sindona, but warned by his friends, he fled to Geneva (where he became a Swiss citizen). Pp. 134-140.

In 1974, Sindona turned up in the U.S. where a long battle for his extradition began. He retained the John Mitchell (of Watergate fame) law firm to represent him, and was found guilty in absentia on 23 counts of misappropriating funds. A Milan court sentenced him to 3-1/2 years in prison.

Sindona put out a contract on the life of Assistant U. S. District Attorney, John Kenney, the chief prosecutor in his extradition hearings (never carried out), as well as on former employees who knew too much (contracts that were carried out).

On July 11, 1979, Giorgio Ambrosoh, an attorney who had been investigating Sindona and accumulating evidence against him for 5 years was assassinated. Within 10 days, two other men closely associated with the investigation were also gunned down.

In August, 1979, Sindona arranged a phony kidnapping. He returned to New York on Oct. 16. The apparent purpose of this staged event was the transfer of monies for the “ransom.” Mafiosa, including the Gambino family were involved. Pp.282-283.

In February 1980, Sindona finally went to trial on charges stemming from the collapse of the Franklin National Bank. On Mar. 27, Sindona was found guilty on 65 counts, including fraud, conspiracy, perjury, false bank statements, and misappropriations of bank funds. While awaiting sentencing, he attempted suicide by slashing his wrists and taking a dose of digitalis. However, he recovered and on June 13, 1980 was sentenced to 25 years in prison and a fine of $200,000. He was given an additional 2-1/2 years for arranging his own kidnapping.

In January 1982, an indictment is issued from Palermo, Sicily, in which Sindona and 65 members of the Gambino, Inzerillo, and Spatola mafia families are charged with running a $600 million a year heroin trade between Sicily and the U.S.

In view of everything he stood to lose, and his demonstrated disregard for human life, Sindona is high on Yallop’s list of murder suspects.

Licio Gelli

He was born April 21, 1919 in Pistoia, Italy, and had no formal education beyond his mid-teens. He was not a Catholic.

He fought with Franco’s army against the Communists in Spain, and had a lifelong hatred of Communists.

He was an Oberleutnant in the SS in Italy and worked for the Nazis as a “liaison officer” during WWII. He played both sides of the fence, sometimes helping the partisans.

Gelli hired out to anyone who could afford him. After the war, he helped Nazis fleeing to South America. His fee was 40% of their money. He developed important contacts in South America and became a close friend of Juan Peron. Ex-Gestapo Chief Klaus Barbie, who settled in Bolivia, and Geffi became business partners. While spying for the communists, he assisted Vatican officials and U.S. intelligence. Part of his fee for spying for Italy was the closure of the file the secret service had on him. His specialty was information: secret dossiers on bankers, politicians, etc.

In 1963, he joined a Masonic lodge, and soon formed another secret lodge “Raggruppamento Gelli – P2.” The ” P” stood for Propaganda, an historic lodge of the 19th century. First he brought in retired senior members of the armed forces, then through them active service heads. His web eventually covered the entire power structure of Italy; his aim: right-wing control. P2 was to function as a state within a state. If the Communists were elected to power, there was to be a coup. He had the active support and encouragement of the CIA. The fist of influential members was a secret known only to Gelli. Two of the members in P2 were Michele Sindona and Roberto Calvi.

Through his friend, Umberto Ortolani, he gained affiliation with the Knights of Malta and the Holy Sepulcher.

In early 1979, Mino Pecorelli, a journalist (and disgruntled P2 member who had earlier published the list of Freemasons) began blackmailing Geffi about a $2.5 billion theft of oil revenues from the Italian government and started publishing small bits of information, including information on the Freemasons. On March 20, 1979, Pecorelli was gunned down, Mafia-style.

In 1981, a raid on Gelli’s home (looking for evidence of his involvement with Sindona) netted a list of 962 P2 members. The ensuing scandal brought down the Italian government. Within 2 months, Gelli was arrested, tried, and sentenced to 4 years in prison and a 16 billion lire fine. However, his lawyers filed an appeal and he was promptly out on bail and once again in the banking business.

In 1981 Gelli lived in Montevideo, Uruguay and apparently extorting large sums of money from Calvi. Calvi’s wife stated that Gelli would not identify himself by name when calling, but called himself by his special code name “Luciani” (the surname of Pope John Paul I).

In 1982, Gelli returned to Europe from South America to obtain Exocet missiles on the black market for Argentina in its Falklands War with Great Britain. He later entered Switzerland on a false passport and was arrested attempting a $55 million transfer into his account in Uruguay, but in 1983 he escaped from the Swiss prison, and in 1984, was living on a ranch a few miles north of Montevideo, Uruguay.

Gelli is placed by Yallop high on the suspect list of possible murderers. In close proximity in South America to Ortolani and Calvi in the weeks just before the pope’s death.

Umberto Ortolani

During WWII he was head of 2 units of the military intelligence service in Italy. Specialty: counterespionage. He was a lawyer, a high official in P2 and a Roman Catholic with many influential Vatican friends. He hosted a secret meeting that resulted in the election of Montini as Pope Paul VI. He is now a citizen of Brazil. He is placed by Yallop high on the suspect list. He had been in close proximity in South America to Gelli and Calvi during the weeks prior to the murder. Had access to every part of Vatican City and had many friends there.

Roberto Calvi (nickname: “Il Cavaliere” – the knight)

He was born Apr. 13, 1920 in Milan, Italy and educated in Bocconi University. He fought for Mussolini and went into banking after the war. In 1947 he went to work for the Banco Ambrosiano in Milan (Archbishop Montini’s bank), and in 1963 was promoted to Central Manager, Banco Ambrosiano.

Calvi and Sindona were friends. Sindona introduced Calvi to Bishop Marcinkus in 1971. Like Sindona, Calvi laundered Mafia money and bought up banks. One of the branches of Banco Ambrosiano in Nassau has Marcinkus on its Board of Directors. Banco Ambrosiano and the Vatican Bank were interlocked, enabling illegal joint operations. Calvi was the Paymaster General of P2.

In 1977, with Sindona in exile and fighting extradition from the U.S., he (Sindona) began blackmailing Calvi to take a more active interest in his predicament. He began a very public washing of Calvi’s dirty laundry that led to an official investigation of Calvi.

In 1978, while vacationing and scoping out prospective business opportunities in South America, Calvi learned of Pope Paul VI’s death. Aware that the new pope would still be angry about Calvi’s role in the 1972 takeover of the Banco Cattolica del Veneto, Calvi realized he was in a precarious position. As news of the Vatican Bank investigations reached him, he became convinced that the new pope was out to get him. During this time, as he moved around – Uruguay, Peru, and Argentina, Gelli and Ortolani were also nearby in South America. The author contends that Calvi discussed the new realities with Pope John Paul I with Gelli, who reassured him the problem would be resolved. Pp. 178-79.

On Jan 29, 1979, Judge Alessandrini who was investigating the Banco Ambrosiano case was murdered and on Apr. 27, 1982, Roberto Rosone, the general manager of Banco Ambrosiano who was trying to clean the bank up was ordered assassinated. The attempt failed; Rosone was only wounded in the legs. It is believed Calvi ordered the hit.

On June 9, 1982, the author interviewed Calvi by phone. Calvi became very agitated when he learned that the central subject was to be Pope John Paul I. On June 17, the body of Roberto Calvi was found hanging under Blackfriars Bridge in London, (in what was called an “acrobatic suicide”). Within days a $1.3 billion loss was discovered in the Banco Ambrosiano Milan.

He is placed very high on the murder suspect list by Yallop. Note proximity in South America to Gelli and Ortolani just prior to pope’s death.

John Patrick Cody

In 1965 he was cardinal of Chicago, Illinois. According to Fr. Andrew Greeley (and others), Cody was a very difficult and demanding administrator.

In 1970, Cody illegally invested $2 million in Penn Central stocks. A few days later the company went bankrupt. Cody had also similarly left his former posts, the diocese of New Orleans and Kansas City, in debt.

He kept dossiers on priests and nuns suspected of disloyalty, summarily dismissed “problem” priests, closed many schools, funneled money to a woman friend – and in various other ways made himself so unpopular with the clergy that they formed a sort of trade union, the Association of Chicago Priests. Rome was petitioned repeatedly with their complaints and concerns – to no avail.

Cody had spent time in Rome, working initially in the North American College and subsequently in the Secretariat of State and had ingratiated himself with Pius XII and the future Paul VI.

By the early 1970’s, the bulk of the Vatican bank’s investments in the U.S. stock market was funneled through Continental Illinois Bank in Chicago. Cody and Marcinkus were friends and worked closely together on many banking transactions. Cody funneled a lot of Chicago money to Rome, some of it used in Poland. This was much appreciated by Wojtyla, the soon-to-be Polish pope, John Paul II.

By 1976, the problems with Cody were so well known that Pope Paul VI offered him a post in the Roman curia. Cody turned it down.

In July 1978 (weeks before Pope Paul VI’s death) Cody was asked to accept a coadjutor (a bishop who would actually run the diocese); Cody would be permitted to stay on as titular head. He angrily refused.

When John Paul I became pope, Cody realized this pope might insist on his stepping aside, where his predecessor had caved in. This was, in fact, JPI’s intention.

Pope John Paul II allowed Cardinal Cody to stay on in Chicago till his death.

Jan. 1981. A federal grand jury served Cody with a number of subpoenas, demanding to see his financial records. He refused. In September when he still had not cooperated, the Chicago Sun Times ran a story outlining a large array of serious crimes he is alleged to have committed.

April 1982. Cody died and with him the investigation into his wrongdoing.

Cody not high on Yallop’s suspect list for the pope’s murder.

Jean Villot

He was Secretary of State to Pope Paul VI and interim Secretary to Pope John Paul I, but was to have been replaced. After JPI’s death, Villot assumed the role of camerlengo (chamberlain), virtually acting as head of the church.

Immediately following JP’s death, Villot removed from the pope’s bedroom his bottle of medicine, papers he was holding in his hands, his will, glasses and slippers. These articles were never seen again.

Villot took total control of events immediately following the pope’s death. He issued statements to the press and to others that were not factual. Two of the most important decisions were: there was to be no autopsy and the conclave to elect the next pope would occur at the earliest possible date: October 14 (two weeks from JPI’s death). This early conclave deflected attention away from the untimely and suspicious death of Pope John Paul I and onto the excitement and suspense of who the next pope would be.

In March 1979. Villot died. Despite his suspicious behavior following JPI’s death, Yallop does not place Villot high on the list of murder suspects – though he was very possibly an accomplice in the coverup. P.256