Francesco Pazienza

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Francesco Pazienza (born 1946) is an Italian businessman, and former officer of the Italian military intelligence agency, SISMI. As of April 2007, he has been paroled to the community of Lerici[1], after serving many years in prison, including a 1993 conviction due to his role in the Banco Ambrosiano scandal[2], and a 1982 conviction for mishandling state secrets.[3]

Pazienza holds a degree in medicine from the University of Rome. He worked as a business consultant in France during the 1970s. In 1979 he was hired into SISMI, and became an assistant to SISMI director, General Giuseppe Santovito. Pazienza left the intelligence agency in wake of the Propaganda Due scandal that rocked the Italian political scene in 1981. The Banco Ambrosiano scandal, Roberto Calvi's "suicide," and charges of mishandling state secrets concerned with the 1980 Bologna bombing, made Pazienza a fugitive from Italian law.[3]

Eventually, Pazienza ended up in the United States. A first extradition request from Italy was handed to the U.S. government in 1984, but Pazienza was not yet arrested. His arrest come only on March 4, 1985.[3] Extradition procedures ensued, and a judge order him to stand trial in Italy[4], an appeal process did not change that, and Pazienza was handed over to the Italian government in June 1986.[5]

Contents

[edit] Mehmet Ali Ağca

During the trial of Mehmet Ali Ağca's 1981 assassination attempt on Pope John Paul II, Ağca claimed to have been visited by Pazienza in his prison cell at Rome's Ascoli Piceno (this came just after the presiding judge called for pazienza in the court room[6][7]). That Pazienza visited Ağca was also claimed by mafioso Giovanni Pandico. From his New York prison, Pazienza denied ever having visited Ağca[8][9]; Pazienza was question on this issue by Italian investigative judge, Ilario Martella, in New York.[10] A short time later, Martella dropped the charges of Agca being "coached" by supposed elements from the Italian military intelligence.[11][12]

[edit] Banco Ambrosiano

[edit] Stefano Delle Chiaie

During the time Pazienza was still a fugitive, he was questioned in the United States by Customs agents regarding the disappearance of funds from the Banco Ambrosiano. Pazienza claims that these Customs agents had told him that Stefano Delle Chiaie had been seen in Miami, Florida, with an unidentified Turk[13], and repeated his position during the time he was on trial on charges stemming from the 1980 Bologna bombing.[14] It is unclear if this Turk was Oral Çelik[13] or Abdullah Çatlı.

[edit] Bologna bombing

Pazienza was sentenced in 1988 for trying to divert the investigation into the 1980 bombing of the Bolonga train station, on charges relating the planting of similar explosive materials in a train in 1981, leading a trail away from the actual perpetrators.[15] In 1990, his conviction was reversed on appeals[16], but a retrial resulted in a definitive prison term handed out in 1995.[17]

[edit] References

  1. ^ "Faccenderie Pazienza Volontario Pubblica Assistenza Lerici", ANSA, 2007-04-17. 
  2. ^ "Olivetti Chief Convicted in Bank Scandal", The Guardian, 1993-04-17, pp. 21. 
  3. ^ a b c "Tale of Intrigue: How an Italian Ex-Spy Who Also Helped U.S. Landed in Prison Here", Wall Street Journal, 1985-08-07, pp. 1. 
  4. ^ "Former Italian Spy Loses First Round in Extradition Case", Wall Street Journal, 1985-09-12, pp. 1. 
  5. ^ "Pazienza Extradited", Financial Times, 1986-06-20, pp. 1. 
  6. ^ Alexander Cockburn. "The Gospel According to Ali Agca", The Nation, Jul 6 / 13 1985. 
  7. ^ "Former Spy Says He Warned the Vatican Of Assassination Try --- Name of Pazienza Crops Up At Trial of the Bulgarians In Attempt to Kill Pope", Wall Street Journal, 1985-08-08, pp. 1. 
  8. ^ "Three deny Agca was coached about 'Bulgarian connection'", UPI, 1985-12-12. 
  9. ^ "Rome Inquiry: Was Agca Coached?", The New York Times, 1985-10-08, pp. A3. 
  10. ^ "Italian Is in New York, Investigating Papal Plot", The New York Times, 1985-12-11, pp. A7. 
  11. ^ "Italian Judge Said to Drop Probe of Agca Being Coached", The Washington Post, 1985-12-18, pp. A31. 
  12. ^ "The Bulgarian Connection Still Holds", Wall Street Journal, 1986-02-12, pp. 1. 
  13. ^ a b "Italian Ex-Agent Ordered Extradited from U.S.", The New York Times, 1985-09-12, pp. A12. 
  14. ^ "Suspected Right-Wing Terrorist Questioned in Papal Shooting", Associated Press, 1987-04-17. 
  15. ^ "Italy's No. 1 Fugitive Arrested by Customs Agents", Associated Press, 1985-03-04. 
  16. ^ "Appeals Court Throws Out Bologna Bombing Convictions", Associated Press, 1990-07-29. 
  17. ^ "Italy remembers 1980 Bologna train station massacre", ANSA, 2007-08-02.