After 1981
In 1981, police raided the office of Propaganda Due masonic lodge so they could catch the Worshipful Master Licio Gelli, and found further evidence against Roberto Calvi. Calvi was imprisoned, put on trial, and sentenced to four years in jail. However, he was released pending an appeal, and he kept his position at the bank. Other alarming developments followed: Carlo de Benedetti of Olivetti bought into the bank and became deputy chairman, only to leave two months later after receiving Mafia threats and lack of co-operation from Calvi. His replacement, a longtime employee named Roberto Rosone, was wounded in a mafia shooting incident. The criminal organization responsible for this shooting was the Banda della Magliana (Magliana Gang) which had taken over Rome's underworld in the late 1970s, and has been related to various political events of the anni di piombo (years of lead).
In 1982, it was discovered that the bank could not account for $1.287 billion (equivalent to $3.1 billion in present day terms). Calvi fled the country on a false passport, and Rosone arranged for the Bank of Italy to take over. Calvi's personal secretary, Graziella Corrocher, left a note denouncing Calvi before jumping from her office window to her death. Calvi himself was found hanging from Blackfriars Bridge in London on June 18.
During July 1982, funds to the off-shore interests were cut off, leading to their collapse, and in August the bank was replaced by the Nuovo Banco Ambrosiano under Giovanni Bazoli. There was much argument about who should take responsibility for losses incurred by the Old Ambrosiano's off-shore companies, and the Vatican eventually agreed to pay out a substantial sum without accepting liability.
In April 1992, Carlo De Benedetti, former deputy chairman of Banco Ambrosiano, and 32 other people were convicted of fraud by a Milan court in connection with the collapse of the bank. Benedetti was sentenced to six years and four months in prison, but the sentence was overturned in April 1998 by the Court of Cassation.
In 1994, former Socialist Prime Minister Bettino Craxi was indicted in the Banco Ambrosiano case, along with Licio Gelli, head of Propaganda Due, and former Justice minister Claudio Martelli. In April 1998, the Court of Cassation confirmed a 12 year sentence for Licio Gelli for the Ambrosiano crash.
Read more about this topic: Banco Ambrosiano