Share this page!

Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project Profile picture
Twitter logo
1 Nov, 5 tweets, 2 min read
NEW: A Syrian-Ukrainian businessman with alleged links to organized crime paid ~$3m into an investment fund backed by Devon Archer, the longtime business partner of Hunter Biden (there is no evidence Biden was involved).

Our latest #FinCENFiles story👇 1/ occrp.org/en/the-fincen-…
Hares Youssef, who is allegedly linked to organized crime boss Semion Mogilevich and Syria’s Assad regime, invested $2.98m in late 2015 into mbloom, a tech startup fund in Hawaii that has since been shut down. 2/
The deal was facilitated by Archer, who has since been convicted in a separate fraud case. Youssef’s payments were flagged as suspicious at the time by bank compliance officers. 3/
Youssef was indicted in Spain in 2017 for allegedly laundering money for Ukrainian oligarch Dmytro Firtash.

Firtash last year joined efforts by Rudy Giuliani and others in Ukraine to generate dirt on the Bidens. 4/
The #FinCENFiles is led by @ICIJorg and based on leaked documents obtained by @BuzzFeedNews.

Read all of OCCRP’s stories in this global investigative project here: 5/
occrp.org/en/the-fincen-…

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
　

Keep Current with Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project

Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @OCCRP

Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project Profile picture
3 Nov
NEW: The son of a prominent Azerbaijani official lives in a luxurious London flat. But he didn’t buy this property, an obscure offshore company did.

This story raises serious questions about this deal that implicate a powerful Turkish businessman. 1/
occrp.org/en/investigati…
An Azerbaijani state water management company, led by Ahmad Ahmadzada, has awarded two lucrative contracts to construction firms owned by Mehmet Cengiz, one of Turkey’s richest people.

This investigation reveals another hidden connection between the two men. 2/
Months before Cengiz’s company signed a contract to build a massive dam in Azerbaijan, a London-based firm controlled by Cengiz made a $3m payment to the mysterious Vremax Properties.

It’s unclear what Vremax, which is based offshore, actually does. It has no website. 3/
Read 9 tweets
Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project Profile picture
20 Sep
NEW: OCCRP is part of the #FinCENFiles, an investigation led by @ICIJorg and based on a leak obtained by @BuzzFeedNews that exposes how illicit money flows have fueled criminality worldwide.

See what we unearthed from the records 👇 1/
occrp.org/en/the-fincen-…
OCCRP’s initial investigations focus on Reza Zarrab, a Turkish money launderer who was arrested by the US for aiding in sanctions evasion.

In this story, we detail how Zarrab and his family used gold-for-cash schemes to funnel billions into Iran. 2/
occrp.org/en/the-fincen-…
The exact amount Zarrab made from money laundering may never be known, but much of his loot went towards big yachts and personal submarines.

In this story, reporters used social media posts and gov't records to chronicle his extravagant lifestyle. 3/
occrp.org/en/the-fincen-…
Read 6 tweets
Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project Profile picture
18 Sep
NEW: Starting with a meeting the day before Trump’s inauguration, here’s the true story behind the "bromance" between President Trump and Turkey’s Erdoğan.

Starring: Trump’s top lobbyist, a Russian oligarch, a jailed shipping tycoon, and Lev Parnas. 1/
occrp.org/en/investigati…
The meeting led to two multi-million dollar contracts for the firm of Brian Ballard, a lobbyist with ties to Trump. It helped build a relationship btw. the two leaders, in which the US president has made foreign policy moves that have baffled both his adversaries and allies. 2/
Involved in setting up the deals was Lev Parnas, whose work with Rudy Giuliani led to Trump’s impeachment.

Also involved were Mübariz Mansimov, a Turkish shipping tycoon accused of terrorism, and Farkhad Akhmedov, a Russian oligarch listed by the US as a Kremlin ally. 3/
Read 5 tweets
Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project Profile picture
9 Sep
NEW: Leaked documents obtained by OCCRP show how Semlex, a Belgian company, made millions in Africa through dubious tenders, bribery, and by selling their political access to other unscrupulous foreign firms. #BiometricBribery 1/
occrp.org/en/biometric-b…
Our latest story in this series focuses on Madagascar, where Semlex paid a former top government official at least $140,000 — and likely much more — in unexplained fees to secure a lucrative contract to make passports. 2/ occrp.org/en/biometric-b…
OCCRP and partners have investigated Semlex’s dodgy dealings for years.

Read more of our reporting here, including one story about how the Belgian company helped channel bribes for a Swiss oil trader that was fined a record $95 million last year. 3/
occrp.org/en/biometric-b…
Read 4 tweets
Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project Profile picture
1 Sep
NEW: Meet #GroupAmerica, one of the most pervasive and violent drug-trafficking gangs you’ve never heard of.

Some say its name stems from rumored ties between the gang's leaders and the US government — maybe even the CIA. 1/
occrp.org/en/group-ameri…
In the 1980s, a Serb took control of the Westies, a New York Irish-American gang that became Group America.

Decades later, police around the world are impressed by the gang's global scope — and stunned that it remains active. 2/
occrp.org/en/group-ameri…
Unlike the cartels that control the whole cocaine supply chain, Group America specializes in being the middleman between sellers in Europe and producers in South America — where the gang’s second-in-command may be in prison for life. 3/
occrp.org/en/group-ameri…
Read 11 tweets
Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project Profile picture
21 Aug
NEW INVESTIGATION: OCCRP and a global partnership of over two dozen journalists unearthed new details about the August 4 explosion in Beirut, which killed 182 and injured over 6,000. #BeirutExplosion 1/
occrp.org/en/investigati…
Reporters uncovered that the owner of the ship that brought the ammonium nitrate to Beirut, the MV Rhosus, was a Cypriot businessman, Charalambos Manoli. He owned companies that also certified and flagged the vessel, despite defects. 2/
At the time, the ship owner was also in $4 million debt to FBME, a Lebanese-owned bank later sanctioned by the U.S. for links to organized crime and financing of groups including Hezbollah. 3/
Read 6 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!

This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Too expensive? Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal Become our Patreon

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us on Twitter!

Like this author's thread?

Get email notifications when new thread is out from this Author!

Check out other threads from this Author!

Read all threads by @OCCRP