Originally published at The Crux
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The Vatican on Wednesday denied rumors a verdict had been reached in the Church trial of Father Marko Rupnik, a notorious former Jesuit and a celebrity artist-priest, days after rumors of the disgraced cleric’s acquittal began circulating in Rome.
“Reports concerning any deliberation by the judges handling the case of Father Marko Ivan Rupnik are entirely unfounded,” reads a statement from the press office of the Holy See shared with journalists on Wednesday.
The statement comes just one day after a lawyer representing five of Rupnik’s accusers released a withering critique of the Church’s efforts to provide justice in the case, complaining of procedural irregularities and impenetrable opacity.
Rupnik’s victims have been waiting for years – some of them for several decades – to see justice done on their alleged abuser, who has received extremely lenient treatment from Vatican authorities and very nearly escaped justice entirely.
Attorney Laura Sgrò told Crux Now she drafted and released her Tuesday letter at her clients’ request.
RELATED: Rupnik victims ‘disheartened and distressed’ but determined, says lawyer
Sgrò says neither she nor her clients have ever been officially informed the trial is underway, nor have they been given to understand how far the
