Panama Papers? No, thank you

In the Wake of the Panama-Papers-developments in the Federal criminal police office has fraud data packets to control and corruption for investigators from 17 countries put together. Alone, the Swiss authorities do not want to accept the data offered - although they are likely to affect a lot of notes from the face-up scandals. the By Thomas Knellwolf, Oliver Zihlmann and Frederik Obermaier Frederik Obermaier

Frederik Obermaier, Born in 1984, is a Senior editor in the Department of Investigative Research. He has studied in Eichstätt, Bogota, and Sana'a, political science, journalism, sociology, and economic geography and 2017/1018 Nieman was a Fellow at Harvard University. Obermaier is a member of the network Research and the International Consortium of Investigative Journalist. Together with his colleague Bastian Obermayer he initiated and coordinated the international research projects "the Panama Papers," and "the Paradise Papers", for which they won awards, including the Pulitzer prize, and (together with Vanessa Wormer) to Germany's "journalist of the year 2016" were elected. Obermaier always look forward to tips, Leaks, and information to national and international scandals from the world of politics and the economy. His PGP Key is 6CC724BE, Threema he can be reached at FPN4FKZE. For more contact options, please visit www.frederikobermaier.com.

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follow the On 20. September 2018 was held in Wiesbaden, Germany, as something of an early Christmas surprise for Top European investigators. At the invitation of the German Federal criminal police office (BKA), met police officers and prosecutors from 17 countries at the headquarters of the police authority. For each host state of a hard disk was prepared. Data from Mossack Fonseca: the Panama scandal law firm were saved to the Panama Papers turned.

An anonymous Whistleblower had to get the data once the süddeutsche Zeitung, and later the Federal criminal police office was also at Mossack-Fonseca-data. Now, investigators should be able to from all over the world, those stories nachrecherchieren, which is about 400 journalists had published over a period of months. It was in tax evasion, fraud and corruption. Accordingly, the investigators resorted to in the time of the BKA.

All but one: the expert of the Swiss Federal office of police, in short: Fedpol. The police officer received instructions from Bern: take the Finger away from the Panama Papers! First it was said that the Swiss Federal police "check" how it go further. But, in the meantime, is chosen according to research of SZ and the Swiss media group Tamedia, The Swiss authorities not to take the offered data - only country. "We can say that no other state has refused to in the EU or EU-associated countries, the adoption of the local data packages," said the BKA.

The decision reinforced the impression that Switzerland is the confidential business with the money from all over the world is more important than the investigation of crimes. This is especially noteworthy, since in almost all scandals that have been uncovered through the Panama Papers, and tracks in the Switzerland. So it was in the case of the Cello-playing Putin Confidant Sergei Roldugin, in the case of the controversial entrepreneur, Beny Steinmetz, and many others.

The Swiss Federal Prosecutor's office justified its Veto, however, in order to be "legal principles regarding evidence and proof of usability". Of private individuals obtained data were only usable "if it can be obtained from the law enforcement authorities are also legally have, and in addition, a balancing of interests for their usability speaks." To do this, you need to know: The BKA is silent about the origin; of the SZ, the investigators have not received the data. In Switzerland there is for investigators to be quite a margin of discretion, said David Zollinger, an Ex-member of the Supervisory office of the attorney General: "The law does not regulate, such as office of the attorney General or Fedpol with Evidence are allowed to bypass the Private procured."

The Swiss investigators out a ton of money as well. In the world were taken due to the Panama-Papers-publications of several Hundred million Euro through the payment of fines. That the documents are promising, it is already well known: journalists found information about the ongoing procedure, the lack of the Swiss criminal pursuers, apparently. Or, as we must now say: in the future be missing.