Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Becciu, the first cardinal convicted by the Vatican’s criminal court, announced on Tuesday that he will not participate in the secret conclave to elect the next pope.
Becciu, once one of the most powerful figures in the Vatican, was stripped of the “rights and privileges” of a cardinal by Pope Francis in 2020 after becoming entangled in a financial scandal.
Despite his conviction for embezzlement and fraud in 2023—resulting in a five-and-a-half-year jail sentence—the cardinal, who “has always maintained his innocence,” launched an appeal that is still under consideration.
He is currently allowed to continue living in his Vatican apartment while the appeal proceeds.
Following the pope’s death last week, Becciu initially pushed to be included in the conclave.
However, in a statement issued Tuesday, he confirmed his decision to step aside, “I have decided to obey, as I have always done, Pope Francis’ will not to enter the Conclave while remaining convinced of my innocence.”
His withdrawal comes just seven days after he told a Sardinian newspaper that “there was no explicit will to exclude me from the conclave nor a request for my explicit renunciation in writing.”
Becciu, originally from Sardinia, previously served as sostituto in the Secretariat of State—a key Vatican role akin to a papal chief of staff, giving him direct access to the pope and significant influence.
He was later appointed to oversee the Vatican’s saint-making office.
The Vatican announced that the conclave will begin on May 7 to elect a new leader for the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics.