28 main suspects in Panama’s tax evasion scandal have been acquitted

The Panama Papers, investigative journalism in form

The German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung and other media outlets of the International Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) network began the Panama Papers tax evasion scandal in the spring of 2016. The German newspaper obtained 11.5 million documents in a massive data leak. Nearly 400 journalists from more than 80 countries, including Belgium (De Tijd, Knack, MO*, Le Soir), are examining these files.

The names of 140 politicians, cronies and other potential tax evaders have emerged. The current British Foreign Secretary David Cameron, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, and Argentine footballer Lionel Messi, among others, have lost their credibility. In Iceland, the publication led to the resignation of Prime Minister Sigmundur Gunnlaugsson. In Pakistan, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was forced to resign. According to the investigation, Russian President Vladimir Putin also had secret shares in Monaco.

The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists won the Pulitzer Prize for the Panama Papers in 2017, the highest award in American journalism. In the wake of these revelations, many countries launched tax investigations in order to recover millions in tax revenues.