Chaldean bishop pleads ‘not guilty’ as patriarch calls for ‘unity and harmony’

The patriarch of the Chaldean Catholic Church has called for “unity and harmony” in the Eparchy of St. Peter following the arrest of Bishop Emanuel Shaleta on March 5.

Meanwhile, Shaleta faced a judge Monday, entering an initial plea of “not guilty” on money laundering and embezzlement charges, while his attorney said the bishop denies the allegations against him.

Bishop Emanuel Shaleta. Credit: Chaldean Eparchy of Saint Peter the Apostle of San Diego.

Patriarch Cardinal Louis Raphael Sako issued a pastoral letter from Baghdad to the Chaldean Catholics of the eparchy March 8, expressing his closeness to them “in this exceptional and painful situation through which your beloved diocese is passing.”

Cardinal Sako told the faithful in his letter Sunday that he “stand[s] with justice, and for this reason [he is] in communication with the Holy See, hoping that the proper measures will soon be taken for the good of the diocese.”

Bishop Shaleta appeared Monday before a judge for an arraignment hearing, at which he pled not guilty to eight counts of embezzlement, eight counts of money laundering, and one count of aggravated white collar crime enhancement.

A deputy district attorney argued at the hearing that Shaleta stole more than $250,000 from the Eparcy of