The rich and powerful of this world tremble before these revelations!
Well more than 300 politicians and other celebrities have been in their sights since Sunday evening: A gigantic data leak with more than 11.9 million explosive documents reveals dubious financial machinations – and puts those affected seriously in distress. The source of the revelations are the so-called “Pandora Papers”, whose evaluation included journalists from “Süddeutsche Zeitung”, NDR and WDR.
According to the reports, those affected include 35 incumbent and former heads of state, plus more than 330 other politicians from almost 100 countries. The names of other well-known personalities also appear in the list of revelations. They all have one thing in common: they are said to have stashed assets “with the help of opaque trusts, foundations and letterbox companies”.
As can be seen from the revelations, the illegal machinations are particularly evident in the gigantic real estate owned by those affected.
► Russia’s President Vladimir Putin is said to have snatched a luxury apartment in Monaco (worth almost 3.5 million euros) through an offshore company. Spicy: The owner of the company is said to be a former playmate of Putin (allegedly also the mother of an illegitimate child).
Foto: Vladimir Smirnov / dpa
“data-zoom-src =” https://bilder.bild.de/fotos/russlands-praesident-wladimir-putin-besitzt-den-berichten-zufahrung-ua-ein-anwesen-im-fuerstentum-monac-965eeda380c44f8295c58092854702c4- 77862892 / Bild / 6.bild.jpg “/> According to reports, Russian President Vladimir Putin owns a property in the Principality of MonacoFoto: Vladimir Smirnov / dpa
► The former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and his wife Cherie are also said to have used a trick to get a multi-million dollar property in central London: According to the revelations, the Blairs are said to have legally avoided paying stamp tax on the property by simply buying the offshore company who owned the property.
► Jordan’s King Abdullah II is said to have used at least around 30 offshore companies in tax havens to buy 14 luxury properties in the USA and Great Britain, according to the “Pandora Papers”.
► The President of Cyprus, Nikos Anastasiadis, was therefore active in the offshore business himself with a law firm that is now run by his daughters.
► The Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis is said to have bought an estate in France for 15 million euros in a non-transparent way. The purchase price flowed “via mailbox companies in Washington, Monaco and the British Virgin Islands to France”, reports the “Süddeutsche Zeitung”. The case goes back to the year 2009 and thus to the time before the multi-billionaire entered politics. Nevertheless, Babi’s revelations could do serious damage: Parliament’s elections are due in his country on October 8th and 9th.
Photo: Petr David Josek/AP
“data-zoom-src =” https://bilder.bild.de/fotos/fuer-tschechiens-ministerpraesidents-andrej-babis-kommen-die-enthuellungen-zum-denkbar-unguenststen-z-dd9da6a1d1204e028281eb9ebd51191a-77862896/Bild/ 6.bild.jpg “/> For Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis, the revelations come at the worst possible timePhoto: Petr David Josek/AP
The head of government rejected the allegations on Sunday evening: it was clear that he had done nothing illegal or bad, Babis told the CTK news agency.
He spoke of an attempt to “pollute him and thus influence the Czech parliamentary elections”. In the past, Babis had often portrayed himself as a fighter against corruption. According to a survey on behalf of the broadcaster “CNN Prima News”, the populist ANO von Babis would be the strongest force in the upcoming parliamentary election with 27.3 percent of the vote.
Claudia Schiffer, Shakira and Ringo Starr are also on the list
Many celebrities such as the German model Claudia Schiffer, ex-Beatle Ringo Starr and pop star Shakira also appeared in the research. Schiffer and Shakira pointed out according to “SZ” that they had adhered to all laws and regulations. Ringo Starr did not respond to a request from journalists.
Foto: picture alliance / Geisler-Fotopress
“data-zoom-src =” https://bilder.bild.de/fotos/mit-dem-topmodel-claudia-schiffer-taucht-auch-der-name-eines-deutschen-weltstars-in-den-papers- auf-77f6433eb33e41c985e0e5d44c78c1af-77862904 / image / 6.image.jpg “/> With the top model Claudia Schiffer, the name of a German world star also appears in the papersFoto: picture alliance / Geisler-Fotopress