Reported by Spencer Woodman

New details have emerged about an ongoing criminal investigation by Cyprus authorities into how one of Russia’s richest men may have used the Mediterranean country as a conduit to avoid war-related sanctions. As part of the Cyprus Confidential investigation, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists examined a major transfer of wealth by billionaire Alexey Mordashov as European sanctions descended upon him.

In response to questions about the transaction, Cyprus authorities told ICIJ a criminal investigation is currently underway, but the exact target of the probe and details of how it is being carried out remain murky. Following the publication of Cyprus Confidential by ICIJ and 68 media partners, Cypriot newspaper Phileleftheros reported that the authorities have apparently been sitting on the same information regarding Mordashov’s share transfer for several months and have taken little known action. Last spring, the German government formally notified Cyprus’ Ministry of Finance and national police of the share transfer, according to Phileleftheros.

Released earlier this month, Cyprus Confidential is a global collaborative investigation based on a trove of more than 3.6 million leaked documents that revealed the vast extent to which billionaires in Russian President Vladimir Putin’s inner circle have used the Mediterranean island as a sophisticated hideaway for billions of dollars of secretive cash of often suspect origin.

The new details about the criminal probe come as lawmakers and activists across Europe are calling for action on potential sanctions violations in the Mediterranean nation of Cyprus in the wake of ICIJ’s revelations. Last week, a member of the European Union Parliament urged lawmakers to launch an investigation into the Cyprus office of the global accounting giant PwC, a key focal point of the ICIJ project.

ICIJ’s reporting focused on the island’s financial services industry that specializes in creating secretive trusts and shell companies, which allow the wealthy to hide cash and conduct financial transactions with secrecy. After Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 — and the threat of Western sanctions loomed large — the island saw a flurry of rushed and secretive transactions between numerous shell companies owned by politically connected Russian oligarchs.

Read full report: https://www.icij.org/investigations/cyprus-confidential/cypriot-authorities-face-scrutiny-over-probe-into-russian-billionaires-moves-to-dodge-sanctions/