Post date: Aug 13, 2012 1:1:51 PM
In a 35-page document on the case which has rocked the Holy See since Gabriele was arrested last May, the Vatican also charged a computer expert who worked in the Vatican bureaucracy with involvement in the case, the first mention of a second man.
The layman, named as Claudio Sciarpelletti, was also ordered to stand trial, although on lesser charges of aiding and abetting a crime.
The Pope's former butler Paolo Gabriele is ordered to stand trial over leaking documents alleging corruption in the Vatican.
VATICAN CITY (AUGUST 13, 2012) (REUTERS) - A Vatican magistrate on Monday (August 13) ordered Pope Benedict's former butler to stand trial on charges of aggravated theft for leaking documents alleging corruption in the Vatican.
The Vatican said it was not clear when the trial would be held but it would not be before the end of September.
Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi said the pope, as the sovereign head of Vatican City, could intervene at any time to stop the trial or pardon Gabriele. But he did not know if the pontiff would do so.
He told gathered journalists: "In accordance with the request of the judges and with the judgement of the court's partial closure of its initial investigation, Mr. Paolo Gabriele is ordered to stand trial on charges of aggravated theft. Mr. Claudio Sciarpelletti is ordered to stand trial on charges of aiding and abetting."
If found guilty Gabriele, who worked in the pope's private apartments serving him meals and helping him dress, could face six years in jail under the laws of the papal state.
The indictment order also revealed that a cheque made out to the pope for 100,000 euros, a gold nugget and a 16th century book were found in Gabriele's house in a search, objects which the butler said he intended to give back.
The documents leaked earlier this year alleged corruption in the Vatican's dealings with Italian companies, including the payment of inflated prices for services, and detailed rivalries between cardinals and clashes over the running of the Vatican bank.