An Italian Priest has gambled away more than 620,000 dollars of his parish money, media reports said on Thursday, backed up by the local Catholic Church. Father Flavio Gobbo, 48, negotiated a plea bargain for a suspended two-year jail term for embezzlement, the Corriere della Sera newspaper said. As part of the deal, he has promised to gradually return the money and signed up for therapy against gambling addiction, with the support of his church superiors. Father Gobbo left his post as parish priest in Spinea, near Venice, in October 2016. At the time, the local church said he was suffering from exhaustion.

Source: Punch April 19, 2018 13:07 UTC