Venezuela's economy is in ruins, but there are still fortunes to be made. One of these — estimated to be worth $100 million — is that of a man named Carlos Luis Aguilera Borjas. And he's not just a businessman. For years Aguilera served the country's revolutionary leader, Hugo Chavez, as a bodyguard, later rising to lead its security agency. How did he make his money after leaving the socialist government?
ROME, Italy - On a hot night in early July, the southern Italian region of Calabria woke to the roar of helicopters and the wail of police sirens.
Shrouded in darkness, more than a thousand policemen in full military gear swept the streets of 19 towns on the very toe of Italy’s boot, entering neighborhoods where they seldom go.
(Photo: Eneas De Troya, CC-BY 2.0)
The Bucharest office of RISE Project, an Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) partner, underwent an unannounced inspection by the anti-fraud bureau of Romania’s National Fiscal Agency (ANAF) even as important Romanian politicians threatened the outlet in both public and private.
Officers from the Romanian Anti-Fraud Authority at the offices of RISE Project, OCCRP's Romanian partner, during a surprise inspection. (Photo: RISE Project)
Read more: Romanian Politician Named in Scandal Hits Back at Journalists: “Peace is Over”
The ongoing construction of Belarus’ first nuclear power plant has sparked a number of serious concerns in that country and in its neighbors, both over the plant’s ultimate safety and the secrecy with which it is being built.
The nuclear power plant under construction in Belarus (Photo: onliner.by; Maxim Tarnalitskiy).
Read more: Watchdogs Cite Shortcuts, Accidents at Belarus Nuclear Plant Construction Site
Corporate lawyer Andrei Pavlov is one of just a few dozen Russian citizens targeted for sanctions by the European Parliament (EP). He is neither a government official, nor a judge, nor a member of the secret services, nor a law enforcement officer. Nor is he a well-known figure even in his native country.
A Jan. 13, 2013 march against the "Law of Scoundrels," which forbade adoption of Russian children by U.S. citizens, in Moscow. (Photo: Sergei Nekhlyudov, CC BY-SA 2.0)
Read more: Emails Allegedly Belonging to Russian Lawyer Reveal Hidden Influence on Magnitsky Case...
Authorities in Azerbaijan and Georgia are facing mounting criticism for their possible role in the apparent kidnapping of Afgan Mukhtarli, the Azerbaijani journalist who disappeared from Tbilisi on May 29 and was next seen two days later being led into a Baku courtroom.
Azerbaijani journalist Afgan Mukhtarli is brought to court in Baku, Azerbaijan on May 31 after disappearing from Tbilisi, Georgia, where he lives. (Photo: Reuters/Aziz Karimov)
Read more: Missing Journalist Sparks Protests, Conflicting Stories
Until late last year, a mention of Macedonia in the halls of power in Washington, DC, would most likely elicit only shrugs.
Two men convicted of serious crimes—one of attempted murder, the other of soliciting a murder—are free because the Czech Republic and Armenia can’t agree to swap the criminals in the interests of justice.
Andranik Soghoyan, in black shirt, wears sunglasses and handcuffs during his Prague trial. (Czech Press Agency photo)
Read more: Hiding in Plain Sight: Wanted Pair Remains Free in Diplomatic Face-Off
Between mid-2015 and mid-2016, Privatbank, the largest bank in Ukraine, handed out over US$ 1 billion in loans to firms owned by seven top managers and two subordinates of its owner at the time, Ihor Kolomoisky, according to a copy of its 2016 loan book reviewed by a reporter for OCCRP. Subsequently, in December 2016, the bank was nationalized after the government found that it was severely undercapitalized, threatening the country’s financial system.
The headquarters of Privatbank in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Photo: Privatbank)
Read more: Ukraine’s Top Bank Lent Owner’s Lieutenants $1 Billion Before Nationalization
Secret intelligence documents obtained by OCCRP and partners show how Russian and Serbian operatives in Macedonia have worked to pry the fragile Balkan nation away from the West.
Read more: Leaked Documents Show Russian, Serbian Attempts to Meddle in Macedonia
Kristina Brazauskienė, the widow of Lithuania’s former Prime Minister Algirdas Brazauskas, is under investigation for tax fraud. The investigation was launched in April after OCCRP’s Lithuanian partner, 15min.lt, disclosed hidden assets in Florida that documents indicate are owned by Brazauskienė and her family.
Kristina Brazauskienė, the widow of Lithuania’s former Prime Minister. (Photo: Stop kadras)
Read more: Widow of Lithuania’s Former Prime Minister Investigated Over Florida Properties
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