Pope’s Butler Sentenced to 18 Months in Prison for Vatican Leaks

Exactly one week ago, the pope’s former butler was put on trial for stealing and leaking Vatican documents (for more information check out our Top 10 Facts You Need To Know About The Pope’s Butler on Trial). Today he was sentenced to 18 months in prison.

Paolo Gabriele, Pope Benedict’s former butler, admitted to being the source of the leaks, but claimed that, “What I feel most strongly inside myself is the conviction that I acted exclusively out of love, I would say a visceral love, for the Church of Christ and its visible representative,” in his final appeal.

The prosecution was seeking a three-year sentence, but the judge took it easy on Gabriele because it was his first offense. The pope is still expected to pardon him.

Earlier this year, Gabriele stole documents from the pope’s desk and leaked them to an Italian journalist. Gabriele has consistently claimed that he did what he did in an attempt to root out corruption that he sees as rampant throughout the church.

This week he accused the Holy See’s police of mistreating him while in their custody.

(h/t Reuters)