In this day and age, we are becoming used to huge document caches full of scandalous info being released after some clever computer whiz finagled their way into some system they were not supposed to access. Now, we are seeing the same old story anew after two plus terabytes of data was dumped after being taken from the server of a prominent Panamanian law firm. Among the revelations is that massive amounts of illicit or shady money is being funneled through the South American nation by some of the most powerful autocrats in the world as well as their shadowy cabal of supporters. But it is not just dictators making use of the system, the treasure trove of scandal also revealed the participation of prominent businessmen, politicians, and celebrities as they seek to stash their cash away the taxman and other entities who want their slice of the pie. Expect, in the coming weeks, more juicy nuggets to emerge from this data dump as more people have a chance to sort through millions of pages of available documents.
See Edward Malnick, Massive leak of Panama law firm’s reports reveals politicians and celebrities using offshore tax haven, The Telegraph, April 3, 2016.
Special thanks to Joel Dobris (Professor of Law, UC Davis School of Law) for bringing this article to my attention.
