By Bronte Price, PoliticKING
Local authorities in Panama raided the headquarters of Mossack Fonseca, the law firm at the center of the Panama Papers scandal, on Tuesday. The firm was hit by a massive document leak, which details numerous offshore shell companies and tax havens used by some of the world’s most wealthy people, including several politicians and celebrities. The leaked documentswere funneled through the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists to more than 100 news outlets in multiple countries. According to Agence France-Presse, the raid, which occurred in Panama City, was carried out by police and an organized crime unit, “with no incident or interference.”
While prosecutors worked inside the offices, police officers guarded the outside of the building. In a statement to the Associated Press, the attorney general’s office said that investigators aimed to “to obtain documentation linked to the information published in news articles that establish the use of the firm in illicit activities.” It also said that searches were made at “the firm's other subsidiaries and at the telephone company’s computer support center.”
Organized crime prosecutors raid the office of law firm at the center of Panama Papers scandal https://t.co/Dewkr9gE5y
— The Associated Press (@AP) April 13, 2016
Although the leaked documents show exactly how the rich and powerful clients of Mossack Fonseca have hidden fortunes in offshore accounts, the firm has continued to deny that it has broken any laws. On Monday, investigators from Panama's intellectual property office went through Mossack Fonseca's home office in Panama City, trying to determine how the leak happened.
Tax officials from 28 countries have come together in Paris on Wednesday, in order to begin an international inquiry into the findings from the Panama Papers. The tax officials will also look at allegations of tax evasion which have and are continuing to emerge from the leak, according to the Guardian. Their plan is to create a global strategy to combat this kind of tax evasion in the future.
Here’s what Jesse Ventura has to say about transparency:
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