Rome, Dec 4 (IANS/AKI) The Vatican bank is under investigation for suspected money laundering via accounts held at one of Italy's largest banks, the UniCredit Group, according to the Italian investigative weekly Panorama.

In its latest issue published Friday, the magazine claims prosecutors are probing transactions totalling 180 million euros handled between 2006 and 2008 by Vatican bank (IOR) accounts held at Unicredit's branch near the Vatican in Rome's Via della Conciliazione.

Some of the funds came from the sale and purchase of real estate, according to the weekly, and the banking operations allegedly break money laundering laws.

Prosecutors told the magazine that they would in the next few days to question Unicredit's senior management over the suspect operations.

They are also investigating deposits made at other Italian banks, Panorama said.

Prosecutor Nello Rossi is heading the investigation, which is being carried out in conjunction with financial specialists from the Italian tax police.

The Vatican bank is no stranger to controversy. It owned a small part of the Banco Ambrosiano and was held partially responsible for the $1.3 billion in bad debts that it left when the bank collapsed.

A Rome court in 2007 said the Italian mafia was behind the 1982 death of former Banco Ambrosiano president Roberto Calvi, who was known as 'God's banker' because of the illicit financial dealings he handled that connected him to the Vatican bank.

Calvi was found hanging beneath Blackfriar's Bridge in London June 18, 1982, with his pockets weighed down with bricks and stones and over $15,000 in cash.