Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Becciu has formally withdrawn from participating in the upcoming conclave to elect a new pope, days after the death of Pope Francis.
In a statement issued through his lawyers on Tuesday, the 76-year-old Italian cardinal said he was stepping aside “for the good of the Church,” despite asserting earlier that he retained the right to take part in the May 7 conclave alongside other cardinals.
“Having at heart the good of the Church I have served and will continue to serve with fidelity and love, and to contribute to the communion and serenity of the conclave, I have decided to obey—as I have always done—the will of Pope Francis not to enter the conclave, while remaining convinced of my innocence,” Becciu said.
Becciu’s potential participation had been a subject of intense debate in the days following Pope Francis’ death, reviving questions over his standing within the Church hierarchy.
Once considered a frontrunner for the papacy and a powerful figure within the Vatican, Becciu fell from grace in 2020 after Pope Francis asked him to resign as prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints and relinquish his rights as a cardinal amid accusations of financial misconduct.
Though he denied any wrongdoing, Becciu was tried in the Vatican’s criminal court and was convicted on finance-related charges in December 2023.
