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6 Oct, 4 tweets, 2 min read
NEW: The head of Russia’s Channel One — a state-owned pro-government outlet — used offshore structures to secretly acquire a stake in a massive project to renovate old Soviet movie theaters. #PandoraPapers 1/ occrp.org/en/the-pandora…
Among the 39 movie theaters were outstanding examples of Soviet modernism. Some were named after capitals of the Soviet republics and drew inspiration from regional architectural styles. Here are the ‘Sofia,’ the ‘Yerevan,’ and the ‘Baku.’ 2/
These buildings were put up for auction by the Moscow city government in 2014 and acquired at the minimum price, with no competitive bidding, by a conglomerate called ADG Group. They were meant to be renovated and modernized. 3/
Instead, almost all have been demolished to build shopping malls. And companies belonging to Konstantin Ernst, the Channel One Head, received loans from stake banks to fulfill this potentially lucrative project. 4/

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More from @OCCRP

Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project Profile picture
3 Oct
What’s a former beauty pageant winner doing with $30m? And what does this have to do with two powerful oligarchs who made their fortunes in Kazakhstan’s notoriously corrupt natural resources sector? #PandoraPapers 1/
occrp.org/en/the-pandora…
Now a director of two dance institutions in the Central Asian country, Assel Kurmabayeva’s long been rumoured to be the tokal, or unofficial (third) wife, of former Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev — arguably the most powerful man in the country. 2/ Image
The Pandora Papers leak reveals how in 2010, she received a payment through highly obscure entities in offshore jurisdictions connected to Vladimir Ni and Vladimir Kim, oligarchs believed to be close confidants of Nazarbayev. 3/ ImageImage
Read 4 tweets
Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project Profile picture
3 Oct
#PandoraPapers: Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš set up a British Virgin Islands company in 2009 that secretly loaned €15m to other shell companies he owned in the U.S. and Monaco.

The money was eventually used to buy luxury French real estate. 1/
occrp.org/en/the-pandora…
Babiš, who ran on an anti-corruption platform, has previously criticized his political rivals for their use of offshore companies.

But he used similar corporate structures to hide his wealth, which he invested in some of these properties. 2/ ImageImage
“This scheme is a textbook example of money laundering,” one financial crime expert told OCCRP.

Babiš “ended up buying a chateau with money of potentially suspicious origin,” said another. 3/
Read 4 tweets
Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project Profile picture
3 Oct
BREAKING: A massive worldwide leak of 11 million+ documents from a slew of offshore service providers exposes the secret wealth and schemes of political leaders, celebrities, and criminals.

These are our investigations as part of the #PandoraPapers 👇 1/
occrp.org/en/the-pandora…
Family and close associates of Azerbaijan’s authoritarian president, Ilham Aliyev, used offshores to hide over half a billion dollars in London property. 2/
occrp.org/en/the-pandora…
Czech Prime Minister President Andrej Babiš, who was elected on an anti-corruption platform, used offshore firms to disguise the investment of €15m in luxury property in the south of France, including a chateau. 3/
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Read 8 tweets
Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project Profile picture
1 Oct
NEW: High-level employees at British American Tobacco UK oversaw a corporate espionage ring in South Africa that surveilled and disrupted its competitors.

OCCRP and partners reveal in fresh detail how the illegal spying operation worked. 1/
occrp.org/en/investigati…
Private security firm Forensics Security Services carried out much of the surveillance.

Through FSS, BAT built up a network of 200+ informants, including law enforcement officers who impounded competitors’ products and used traffic cameras to spy on rivals. 2/
From 2012-2016, documents show, BAT signed off on some $42.6m for the espionage ring.

Officials in the tobacco major’s HQ received regular reports on its operations, even sending ex-British intelligence officers to help with recruitment and training. 3/
Read 5 tweets
Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project Profile picture
28 Sep
NEW: Syria has found an unusual way to raise cash: charging citizens abroad large fees to avoid military conscription.

Men who don’t pay face the threat of having their family’s assets in the country seized.

Our story with @guardian 1/
occrp.org/en/37-ccblog/c…
One Syrian living in Sweden paid $8,000 to the embassy to avoid military conscription, which is mandatory for men between the ages of 18 and 42. 2/
U.S. and EU sanctions have made it harder for Syrian embassies to electronically send funds back home, pushing them to ask for cash payments.

Some who’ve paid told OCCRP that they fear the money will be used to fund the military. 3/
Read 4 tweets
Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project Profile picture
27 Sep
NEW: OCCRP found irregularities and violations in an Iraqi infrastructure project aimed at building 200 new schools.

A decade — and hundreds of millions of dollars — later, officials say less than half have been completed to the government’s standards. 1/
occrp.org/en/investigati…
The project, launched by Iraq’s education ministry, came amid the broader failure of Iraq’s education system after years of conflict and mismanagement. 2/
More than 3.2 million Iraqi children are not attending school, according to the UN. About a third of schools run double shifts to try to ease the load. 3/
Read 4 tweets

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