According to an investigation published Sunday by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), about thirty current and former leaders, and more than 300 politicians around the world, as well as stars or criminals, have hidden assets in offshore companies in particular due to tax evasion. purposes.
Tony and Cherie Blair, April 17, 2013, in London. (Pool/Chris Jackson)
In all, ICIJ has established links between offshore assets and 336 high-profile leaders and politicians, as well as stars and criminals, who have set up nearly 1,000 businesses, more than two-thirds of them in the British Virgin Islands. Assets for tax evasion purposes. Here are the most famous of them.
• Tony and Cherie Blair
Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and his wife Cherie acquired an office building in 2017 by buying a company in the Virgin Islands that owns the building. The deal saved them about $400,000 in taxes, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists reported.
Tony and Cherie Blair, April 17, 2013, in London. (Pool/Chris Jackson)
• Dominique Strauss-Kahn
The former French minister and former managing director of the International Monetary Fund channeled several million dollars in consulting fees to companies through a Moroccan tax-exempt company, according to documents examined by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists.
In total, according to the French daily the scientist ICIJ Partner, 600 French appear in the poll Including a “far-right conspirator” who used a company in Seychelles to “sell books and miracle pills”.
Dominique Strauss-Kahn, September 6, 2018 (AFP/JOEL SAGET)
• Jordan’s King Abdullah
Since taking power in 1999, King Abdullah of Jordan has acquired 14 luxury properties in the US and UK through a network of companies located in tax havens such as the Virgin Islands.
For $106 million, he bought three oceanfront villas in Malibu, California, and properties in London and Ascot (UK), according to this survey.
His lawyers assured the consortium that he used his personal wealth and turned to offshore companies for security and discretionary reasons.
King Abdullah II, May 27, 2021 (Baraka/Alex Brandon)
Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis
Before he became prime minister, Czech billionaire Andrej Babis put $22 million into shell companies that were used to fund the purchase of Chateau Bigaud, a large estate located in Mougins, in southern France. He did not mention it in his declaration of the assets when he entered politics, according to the Bandura Papers.
The prime minister, implicated in a case of fraud in European subsidies and conflict of interest, faces parliamentary elections on October 8 and 9. He stressed that he would not do anything illegal, and on Sunday condemned the maneuver aimed at “discrediting” before the elections.
Andrei Babis, September 9, 2020 in Vienna. (AFP/Joe Clamart)
• Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta
Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta has made fighting corruption and transparency in public life a hallmark of his speech. The consortium wrote that he and six members of his family, including his mother, brother and two sisters, own at least $30 million in several offshore companies.
Uhuru Kenyatta, September 29, 2021 (AFP/GORDWIN ODHIAMBO)
• Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan
Imran Khan was elected president of Pakistan in the summer of 2018 on an anti-corruption platform after the trial of Nawaz Sharif, which was swept by the “Panama Papers”, another International Federation of Certified Public Accountants investigation into foreign funds.
According to the consortium, members of his family and government hold millions of dollars in offshore accounts. The Prime Minister confirmed on Twitter that he would “investigate” all Pakistani nationals mentioned in the Pandora Papers.
Imran Khan, January 21, 2020 in Davos. (AFP/Jim Watson)
• Relatives of Russian President Vladimir Putin
According to the ICIJ, in 2003 Svetlana Krivonozhikh, a woman presented by the Russian media as a former lover of President Vladimir Putin, acquired an apartment for four million dollars in Monaco through offshore accounts.
According to the ICIJ, an alleged confidant of the president, Pyotr Kolbin, is linked to a gathering abroad that includes the oligarch Gennady Timchenko, who is also a friend of the Russian head of state.
The ICIJ investigation also claims that Konstantin Ernst, CEO of Russia’s first television station, has suspiciously acquired a huge plot of land in Moscow via an offshore company.
On Monday, the Kremlin described the information as “baseless.”
Vladimir Putin, September 29, 2021 (POOL / VLADIMIR SMIRNOV)
• Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev
Relatives of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, who have been regularly targeted on corruption charges, have struck mysterious property deals in the UK, including the $45 million purchase of an office building in his son’s name. BBC.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, October 4, 2020, in Baku. (Azerbaijani Presidency / HANDOUT)
Ecuadorean President Guillermo Lasso
Ecuadorean President Guillermo Laso has provided money in two trust funds headquartered in the United States, in South Dakota, according to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists.
“All my incomes were declared and I paid the corresponding taxes in Ecuador, making me one of the main taxpayers in the country on a personal basis,” Mr. Lasso, a former banker, said in a statement. “All investments made in Ecuador and abroad have always been made within the framework of the law.”
Ecuadorean President Guillermo Laso, August 31, 2021 (AFP/RODRIGO BUENDIA)
• Claudia Schiffer
German model Claudia Schiffer also has offshore accounts. According to his agent, it is not about tax evasion.
Claudia Schiffer, May 30, 2019 in New York (AFP / DON EMMERT)
• Shakira
Colombian singer Shakira is also proven to have an offshore account. According to his agent, it is not about tax evasion.
Shakira September 5, 2019 (AFP / BRYAN R. SMITH)
• Maveaux Chefs Rafael Amato
Mafia boss Rafael Amato, who inspired the movie Gomorra, also used a dummy company to buy land in Spain. Connected to several murders, he is serving a 20-year prison sentence.
Raffaele Amato, 27 février 2005, in Naples. (carabinere/hs)
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