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Hello John,
The political ascent of Sierra Leone’s president Julius Maada Bio, who took office in 2018, appears to have coincided with newfound wealth for his wife and her family. A new OCCRP investigation reveals the luxury villas and other properties snapped up by Bio’s wife and her relatives in Gambia in recent years.
Meanwhile, reporters learned that a company owned by oligarch Roman Abramovich has shut down — and left a multi-million-euro tax bill unpaid in Cyprus. We previously revealed how the fraudulent yacht-leasing company, Blue Ocean, was part of a tax evasion scheme.
And finally, our Bosnian member center found that dozens of notorious Balkan crime groups have been hijacking civilian identities to obtain “clean” passports, helping them carry out their illicit activities abroad.
Read on for the latest in crime and corruption.
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The First Lady of Sierra Leone’s Luxury Property Spree
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Before she became the first lady of Sierra Leone, Fatima Bio lived in a subsidized rental apartment in South London.
Sale records and other documents obtained by OCCRP show she now owns two villas, a four-story apartment building, and an apartment in high-end neighborhoods in Gambia, a country where she and her family have roots.
Her relatives have also scooped up new luxury real estate — including a $500,000 villa bought in her mother’s name.
All together, OCCRP identified at least 10 property purchases by the first lady and her family since her husband Julius Maada Bio became president in 2018, worth a total of at least $2.1 million.
A review of their tax records, employment history, asset ownership, and other publicly available information did not reveal evidence of the kind of wealth needed to cover these transactions.
So where did the money come from?
Read the full story →
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Blue Ocean Scuttled, As Cyprus Tax Bill Left Unpaid
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This week in Cyprus, it emerged that Blue Ocean, a company owned by sanctioned Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich, had not paid a cent of its 14-million-euro tax bill before shutting down last year.
Alongside The Bureau of Investigative Journalism, BBC, and our Cypriot member center CIReN, OCCRP published an investigation into Blue Ocean in January, revealing that the firm had been set up as part of an apparent attempt to evade millions of euros in tax.
After Cypriot tax officials found that the yachts were not in fact used commercially as advertised, they ordered Blue Ocean to pay 14 million euros to cover the unpaid Value Added Tax (VAT).
But Cyprus’ tax commissioner reported to parliament that none of that was paid. He then told CIReN that it would now be impossible to recover the funds.
“From whom can I collect money when the company no longer exists?” he said.
Read the full story →
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Azerbaijan-Owned Tanker Hit By “Shadow Fleet” Sanctions
The government of Azerbaijan owns one of the almost 100 tankers recently placed under United Kingdom sanctions for transporting Russian oil, OCCRP revealed this week.
On May 9, the U.K. announced sanctions targeting the “decrepit and dangerous shadow fleet carrying Russian oil,” placing restrictions on oil tankers which have carried “more than $24 billion worth of cargo” since early 2024.
The E.U.’s expanded sanctions against Russia also took aim at the “shadow fleet” this week, sanctioning 194 vessels, 31 arms supply companies, and several banks.
The penalties come at a time when Azerbaijan has been striking energy deals with the European Union.
Read the full story →
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Organised Crime Groups Using Bosnian Civilian IDs
Dozens of Balkan crime figures have been using cash and contacts to obtain passports bearing the names of unwitting Bosnian citizens, reporters at the Center for Investigative Reporting (CIN) have found.
The fraudulent travel documents, which have been obtained by some 60 members of organized crime groups since 2013, enabled the gangsters to fly under the radar as they travelled the world to carry out illicit activities, including drug smuggling and murder.
The gangs relied on paid intermediaries who appear to have been able to access a government database that allowed them to pinpoint which Bosnian citizens had never applied for ID documents, making them prime targets for identity theft.
Some of these victims, meanwhile, have paid the price, facing questions from authorities after their names triggered alerts.
Read the full story →
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Proposed Hungarian Law Is An ‘Attack on the EU’
A bill targeting foreign-funded NGOs and civil groups is raising alarm in Hungary.
Critics warn that if enacted, the draft legislation submitted by Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s ruling party this week would open the door to intensified scrutiny and potential blacklisting of civil society groups, media outlets, and any organisations receiving foreign funding. Critics said it would also violate E.U. principals.
Dutch politician and Member of the European Parliament Tineke Strik described the push as a “declaration of war on NGOs and independent media”, and “a frontal attack on the EU”.
Read the full story →
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OCCRP Report Spurs Official Probe
An investigation by OCCRP and Lithuania's 15min has prompted Lithuanian authorities to launch a probe into the founders of Bankera, a crypto firm that raised over €100 million in a 2018 initial coin offering (ICO).
Reporters found evidence that Bankera’s co-founders used a portion of the funds raised in the ICO to finance luxury real estate purchases through a Vanuatu-based bank they had acquired.
Read our Bankera investigation →
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Are You A Mid-Career Investigative Journalist?
The Next-IJ Cross-Border Investigative Training Program is now accepting applications for free, one-day intensive sessions, designed to enhance your investigative reporting capabilities through practical, hands-on learning.
Led by expert investigative journalists and researchers from OCCRP and Transcrime, the trainings will dive into:
- Advanced tools and techniques for data-driven investigations
- Cross-border collaboration strategies
- Real-world case studies on financial crime, political corruption, and global trafficking
Two dates available:
Spots are limited — apply now and sharpen your investigative edge.
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Book Launch: Kleptocracy
How do UK lawyers, PR agents, and accountants help kleptocrats thrive?
OCCRP’s Chief of Impact Alexandra Gillies joins a panel to mark the launch of a new book, Indulging Kleptocracy, which looks at the emergence of transnational kleptocracy and how it has transformed international politics.
The panel will discuss key findings from the book — and investigative journalism’s role in fighting back against transnational corruption.
📍European Parliament Library, Brussels
May 20, 12:30 p.m.
In-person only, register here.
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OCCRP and partner outlets shortlisted for Global Investigative Journalism Network's Sigma and Global Shining Light Awards
The Dubai Unlocked project, a collaborative investigation by OCCRP and 70+ partners, is on the shortlist for the Global Investigative Journalism Network's Sigma Award for data journalism.
Several of our publishing partners and member centers are also finalists for the Sigma Award and the network’s Global Shining Light Awards, which honors watchdog journalism done under threat in a developing country.
They include IRPI (Italy), SIRAJ (Syria), DARAJ (Lebanon), ARIJ (Jordan), and CLIP (Latin America).
Read about the Global Shining Light Awards finalists, including large outlets and small and medium outlets.
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