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Vatican Financial Watchdog Defends Actions After Raid

Associated Press

   VATICAN CITY - The Vatican's financial watchdog agency on Wednesday
   strongly denied allegations of wrongdoing by Vatican prosecutors who
   ordered an unprecedented raid on its offices and seizure of
   confidential documents.

   The board of the Financial Information Authority, which works with
   national financial intelligence units around the world in the fight
   against money laundering and other financial crimes, issued a statement
   Wednesday insisting the agency's activities were entirely proper.

   An internal AIF investigation concluded that neither the authority's
   suspended director, Tommaso Di Ruzza, nor anyone else at the agency
   "improperly exercised his authority or engaged in any other
   wrongdoing."
   The statement was issued by the Vatican press office in a sign of
   institutional backing.

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