Authorities say the suspect is already known to Vatican security

By Tablet Staff

WINDSOR TERRACE — Italian police identified the sender of the letter addressed to Pope Francis that contained three bullets as a French citizen “already known to Vatican security.” The name of the individual has not been released by authorities.

The country’s national military police, Carabinieri of Milan, are currently trying to find the location of the suspect “because it would raise a different level of alarm to know if he were in France or in St. Peter’s Square in Rome,” according to the Italian news agency ANSA.

The stamp on the envelope indicated it came from France, and the bullets were 9mm Flobert-round bullets. Reportedly, there was a message inside making reference to the Vatican’s financial operations, as well as a copy of a 10-Euro deposit, but it is not known for what and under what circumstances the deposit was referencing.

The envelope had written on it in pen and with poor handwriting: “The pope. Vatican City. St. Peter’s Square in Rome.” The envelope was flagged by employees at a mail sorting facility near Milan in the early hours of Aug. 9.