Mardnkus faces cash scrutiny

ARCHBISHOP Paul Marcinkus has never asked his lawyer to represent him in his latest financial troubles. Archbishop Marcinkus and other leading officials of the Vatican Bank (10R) are being served with notices of investigation in connection with a loan made to an Italian businessman Carlo Pesenti. On a previous occasion the Archbishop's notification was returned through the diplomatic channels and is now the subject of a court decision.
This time a Milanese magistrate is investigating Archbishop Marcinkus and his two leading collaborators Luigi Mennini and Pellergrino de Stroebel for a loan they gave in 1972. They lent 50 thousand million lire (£21 million) to Pesenti's property company Italmobiliare. The loan was indexed to the Swiss franc and as its value against the lire rose from 157 lire to more than 500, the repayment to the Vatican bank was 160 thousand million lire for the loan (£63.7 million).
Pesenti reported this to his company's stockholders meeting on 30 July 1979.
A shareholder, Sicilian Giuseppe Inzana asked the magistrature to investigate.
• There is a certain mystery about the agreement Pesenti signed in the Vatican on 24 November 1972. Because of an airline strike he arrived late at
the appointment and Archbishop Marcinkus had left. The agreement was signed by Mennini.