Cardinal found with forbidden phone during conclave to elect Pope Leo, book says

Source: NBC News/Reuters

March 1, 2026, 5:03 AM EST / Source: Reuters


VATICAN CITY — The secret conclave that elected Pope Leo head of the Catholic Church last May was interrupted when one of the 133 cardinals involved was found carrying a cellphone, a massive security breach, a book released on Sunday revealed.

As the clerics were preparing to take their first vote inside the Vatican's Sistine Chapel, which was fitted with jamming equipment to prevent outside communications, security officials picked up the signal of an active mobile connection.

The cardinals stared at each other incredulously, then one of the older clerics discovered he had a phone in his pocket and handed it over, according to "The Election of Pope Leo XIV", a new book by two long-time Vatican correspondents.

The book does not name the cardinal or suggest he had any motive for keeping his phone, saying the moment left him "disoriented and distressed".

Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/world/the-vatican/cardinal-found-forbidden-phone-conclave-elect-pope-leo-book-rcna261182