IOR president was offered ‘protection’ to approve London deal

Jean-Baptiste De Franssu told the Vatican court last week that he had "no other choice" but to refer the London deal for investigation.

The president of a major Vatican Bank told a courtroom Thursday that he reported a suspicious Vatican property deal to investigators, even while senior Vatican officials offered him “protection” to help the deal go through.

Jean-Baptiste De Franssu is president of the Institute for Works of Religion, a Vatican City bank. Amid a sprawling Vatican City cri…