Cyprus implicated in the Magnitsky scandal
The international Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) has again implicated Cyprus in investment cases related to the luxury hotel Cap St Georges in Peyia, western Cyprus. The connection ties back to the infamous Magnitsky case, a high-profile tax fraud scandal in Russia.
Named after whistleblower Sergei Magnitsky, who died in prison after exposing a $230 million fraud, the case involved funds being funneled out of Russia through a complex network of shell companies.
The OCCRP report reveals a connection between the Cap St Georges Hotel and the Magnitsky case. Advertisements list Korantina Homes, owned by Cypriot businessman George Ioannou, as the resort’s developer. However, the resort’s origins are more intricate than suggested, developed by a group of companies, including shadowy offshore entities, making ownership difficult to trace. Early investors in the luxury villas at Cap St Georges were allegedly linked to the notorious Russian tax scam.
The alleged leader of the criminal group behind the tax fraud, Dmitry Klyuev, reportedly purchased a villa in Cap St Georges and appears to have been a shareholder in an investment company connected to the resort.
