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Article

6 Aug 2019

Author:
Global Witness

How Following Tainted Public Money from Congo led me to the heart of Europe

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Europe’s flawed anti-money laundering framework enables kleptocrat rulers and their families to loot their own country...In recent months, I’ve published investigations revealing how Denis Christel Sassou-Nguesso and Claudia Sassou-Nguesso, son and daughter of Congo’s President and elected members of the Congolese parliament, apparently stole over $70 million from state coffers for their personal gain...

The investigative trail led me right to the heart of Europe, with seven different European countries involved in a scheme that bears all the hallmarks of money laundering. It’s not exactly easy to stash away $70 million in bags of cash. Instead, in order to hide the tainted public money and freely spend it, the President’s kids set up a complex network across Europe. Here’s what they did:

  • Picked a Portuguese businessman to act as a nominee (a ‘frontman’);
  • Moved $70 million of Congolese public funds through a network of at least 10 shell companies set up in Cyprus, Estonia and Spain;
  • Spent the money in Poland, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland and United Kingdom, according to a police report.

 All these countries played a key part in the scheme, most likely enabling the Sassou-Nguessos to enjoy the spoils of their dirty money in Europe...In April, my investigation revealed how Claudia Sassou-Nguesso used a portion of the public funds she seemingly stole to purchase a luxury apartment in Trump International Hotel & Tower in New York.

Part of the following timelines

Republic of Congo: Son of president stole over $50 million from the Congolese treasury says new report

Le fils du Président de la République du Congo Denis Sassou-Nguesso aurait détourné plus de 50 millions de dollars du trésor public congolais, selon un nouveau rapport