Tag Archives: Panama

Partner in “Panama Papers” law firm accuses Panamanian president of accepting illegal “donations”

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A partner in the law firm at the heart of the “Panama Papers” scandal fell out publicly with Panama’s president — a former friend — on Thursday, accusing him of accepting “donations” from a Brazilian company that has admitted to graft.

Ramon Fonseca Mora told reporters that President Juan Carlos Varela confided he received from Odebrecht, a Brazilian construction giant that paid millions of dollars in bribes to land huge public works contracts in Latin America.

Fonseca — who used to be a high-ranking advisor to Varela but was dismissed when the Panama Papers leak burst forth in April last year — made the allegation as Panamanian prosecutors conducted a surprise raid on his firm as part of their probe into the Odebrecht bribes and the Panama Papers.

He had promised to stand by the prominent lawyer as the Panama Papers scandal — a vast data leak from the Mossack Fonseca law firm that detailed how the world’s wealthy stashed assets in offshore companies — unfolded.

But on Thursday it appeared that amity no longer held.

“President Varela told me — may lightning strike me if I lie — that he had accepted donations from Odebrecht because he couldn’t fight everyone,” Fonseca said as he arrived to respond to prosecutors’ questions related to Thursday’s raid.

Several countries in Latin America, among them Panama, Mexico, Argentina, Peru and Uruguay, are carrying out investigations into bribes paid by Odebrecht.

In December, the Brazilian company agreed with the US Justice Department to pay a world record $3.5-billion fine after admitting it paid $788 million in bribes to win fat construction contracts in 12 countries.

More revelations are expected soon because current and former Odebrecht executives have signed tell-all plea deals in Brazil in exchange for lighter sentences.

In Panama, ex-president Ricardo Martinelli’s son and brother are under investigation.

Fonseca wrote in his Twitter account that he and his partner at the law firm, Juergen Mossack, had “nothing to do with Odebrecht.”

Panama Seeks To Punish Countries That Blacklist It As ‘Tax Haven’

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The government of Panama on Tuesday announced a bill that would take a range of steps against countries that put it on their blacklists of “tax havens” in the wake of the Panama Papers revelations.

The legislation would impose tax, trade and migration measures on companies or individuals from those countries that “engage in practices that discriminate or imply damage to economic interests” of Panama, a statement said.

The move could be directed at France, which put Panama back on its national blacklist of tax havens in April following the Panama Papers reports, which showed how some of the world’s wealthy stashed assets in offshore firms created by the Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca.

Colombia could also be targeted for keeping tariffs on Panama textile imports despite a World Trade Organization ruling calling for them to be scrapped.

Panama has vowed to improve its fight against money laundering and tax evasion, but has fallen short of regulations the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development wants to see adopted internationally.

The bill will be put to Panama’s Congress for debate and a vote.

Credit: Guardian

US Opens Criminal Probe Linked To #PanamaPaper Leak

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The US Justice Department has opened a criminal investigation involving the leaked Panama Papers on offshore shell companies, according to an official letter to the group that brought the records to light.

The letter from the office of Manhattan US Attorney Preet Bharara, obtained by AFP Wednesday, asks to discuss the investigation with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, which worked with media outlets to reveal the documents.

The letter, dated April 3 and obtained from the ICIJ, said Bharara’s office “has opened a criminal investigation regarding matters to which the Panama Papers are relevant.”

His office said it “would greatly appreciate the opportunity to speak as soon as possible” with someone from ICIJ on the matter.

The letter gave no information on the subject of the investigation, and was not a subpoena that would force the ICIJ to turn over any of the 11.5 million confidential documents leaked from Panama law firm Mossack Fonseca.

Access to the documents remains limited to a handful of international media organizations.

Reports from the ICIJ and the media groups based on the Panama Papers link a number of international leaders, including Russian President Vladimir Putin, British Prime Minister David Cameron, and leaders and top officials in Ukraine, China and Argentina, to offshore shell companies that can be used to hide wealth and launder money.

Iceland’s Prime Minister Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson was also forced to resign after the documents showed he and his wife made use of an offshore company.