Mossack Fonseca, a law firm that specializes in establishing offshore companies, has been under scrutiny after the “Panama Papers” leak, in which 11.5 million confidential documents belonging to the firm were leaked by an anonymous source and distributed by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ).
Police officers under the order of Panama’s attorney general raided the Panama City headquarters of Mossack Fonseca on Tuesday night to search for evidence of illegal activities.
This follows last week's raid of Mossack Fonseca's El Salvador office.
Mossack Fonseca, a law firm that specializes in establishing offshore companies, has been under scrutiny after the “Panama Papers” leak, in which 11.5 million confidential documents belonging to the firm were leaked by an anonymous source and distributed by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ).
Panamanian national police carried out the raid under the command of Javier Caravallo, a prosecutor who specializes in money laundering and other financial crimes.
The firm has yet to comment on the raid, and founding partner Ramon Fonseca denied that he and his firm have broken any laws.
The raid occurred the night before tax authorities from around the globe gathered in Paris to analyze the leaked documents and discuss investigation strategies. Panamanian President Juan Carlos Varela has announced the formation of an international panel tasked with reviewing and improving Panama’s laws governing its financial sector.
It will be recalled that prominent Nigerians, including Senate President Bukola Saraki, former Delta State Governor James Ibori, and cement magnate Aliko Dangote, were implicated in the Panama Papers.