Pope Francis authorized spending up to 1 million euros to free a Colombian nun kidnapped by al-Qaida-linked militants in Mali, a cardinal testified Thursday, revealing previously secret papal approval to hire a British security firm to find the nun and secure her freedom.

[the information came to light as part of the] Vatican’s sprawling financial fraud trial, which originated in the Holy See’s 350 million euro investment in a London property and expanded to cover other alleged crimes. Prosecutors have accused the defendants of a host of crimes for allegedly fleecing the Holy See of millions of euros in fees, commissions and bad investments.

https://www.heralddemocrat.com/2022/05/06/pope-okd-spending-1m-euros-to-free-kidnapped-nun/

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Catholic archdiocese in Nigeria announces death of kidnapped priest

A Catholic archdiocese in Nigeria on Wednesday announced the death of a priest who was kidnapped in March.

Father Joseph Akete Bako died more than a month after he was seized on March 8. Bako, 48, was kidnapped by bandits following an attack on St. John’s Catholic Parish, where he served as pastor.

Father Emmanuel Anyanwu, the assistant pastor at St. John’s Catholic Parish, told the charity Aid to the Church in Need in April that Bako “suffered greatly before his death.”

“He was tortured because they were forcing him to pay a huge amount of ransom for his release. In this case, there was physical torture and beatings which caused him huge amounts of pain and agony,” Anyanwu said.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/251215/catholic-archdiocese-announces-death-of-kidnapped-priest-in-nigeria