Cardinal calls accusations 'grotesque' at Vatican corruption trial

FILE PHOTO: Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Becciu, who has been caught up in a real estate scandal, pauses as he speaks to the media a day after he resigned suddenly and gave up his right to take part in an eventual conclave to elect a pope, near the Vatican, in Rome, Italy, September 25, 2020. REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane/File Photo

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - The cardinal at the centre of a huge corruption trial testified for the first time on Thursday, saying he was the victim of a "media massacre" and would prove he had not embezzled even one cent of the Vatican's money.

Cardinal Angelo Becciu is one of 10 defendants accused of fraud, extortion, money laundering, embezzlement and other crimes, mostly linked to the Vatican's purchase of a luxury building in London for 350 million euros ($400 million) in 2018.