Thread by @MikeSallah7

OLIGARCH'S SECRET TROPHY: How Ihor Kolomoisky and his partners secretly dominated the real estate of a major American city with hundreds of millions in stolen money -- and no trace of ownership. #moneylaundering
post-gazette.com/news/crime-cou…

Kolomoisky’s venture into Cleveland, under a web of offshore companies, remains one of the most troubling examples of what’s gone wrong with financial transparency laws and how an oligarch dominated the real estate of a major American city without ever disclosing his ownership.

The pipeline of millions into Cleveland and other places has already prompted a grand jury investigation that led FBI agents last year to raid Optima’s landmark skyscraper, One Cleveland Center. That same day, the FBI also descended on Optima’s 55-story penthouse in Miami.

“It’s happening in Middle America. That’s what’s moving the needle. It’s a new front in how money laundering is used,” said Scott Greytak, advocacy director for Transparency International in Washington, which tracks global corruption. @Ashley__Murray and @TanyaKozyreva

Former Cleveland councilman Jay Westbrook said the city was desperate at the time for investment during the Great Recession and never bothered to perform due diligence on the new company. "It wouldn't have mattered if it was Billy the Kid," he said.newsinteractive.post-gazette.com/dirty-dollars-…

“This is the marker in the sand,” said Scott Greytak of Transparency International. “This is a truly potentially transformative moment for the role the U.S. plays to dirty money around the world.”

“This is the marker in the sand,” said Mr. Greytak. “This is a truly potentially transformative moment for the role the U.S. plays to dirty money around the world.”
post-gazette.com/news/crime-cou…

Miami's skyline was built in the 1980s by a cocaine trade that rivaled the city's biggest industries. Now, Cleveland's skyline has been showered with shadowy money by an oligarch who became the city's largest commercial landlord. @Ashley__Murray and @TanyaKozyreva