11.9 million financial documents containing 1,200 Belgians
A hard drive, containing more than 11.9 million documents dated from 1996 to 2020, found its way into the hands of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), which includes, for Belgium, The evening, De Tijd and Thing. In these documents which contain some precious secrets appearing more than 29,000 beneficiaries of shell companies, including 1,200 Belgians, these media reported on Sunday evening.
“This is more than double than during the Panama Papers, which had already shaken the planet in 2016. Among these beneficiaries, 35 heads of state, 133 billionaires, a few football stars, major criminals, a handful of figures from the show -biz? and a majority of strangers», Writes in particular Le Soir.
On the Belgian side, 1,217 people of Belgian nationality or residents of the Kingdom have been identified. Thirty-three of these names were already in the Panama Papers. These profiles are varied, ranging “from the retired pharmacist whose wife sells glasses to the hash dealer, whose criminal record is already well stocked, to the couple at the head of hairdressing salons on the Coast to the judicial officer already convicted of fraud . Without forgetting this young millionaire who made a fortune thanks to bitcoins», According to Le Soir.
On the international scene, we find in particular the King of Jordan, the Ukrainian, Azeri, Kenyan and Ecuadorian presidents, the Czech Prime Minister or the former British Prime Minister Tony Blair.