Deloitte helped in falsifying documents to evade tax on Abramovich’s wealth, BBC finds
Leaked documents show Deloitte Cyprus reviewed backdated records that removed $672 million in assets and left only $75,000 in one company account.
- A joint investigation by BBC Panorama and the Bureau of Investigative Journalism revealed that aides of Roman Abramovich and Deloitte Cyprus falsified financial records to hide assets and evade taxes.
- Facing a 2006 Cyprus transparency law that threatened to expose his wealth, Abramovich's associates devised a scheme to backdate documents and transfer assets to the British Virgin Islands.
- The falsified accounts hid $672m in luxury assets including superyachts and mansions, while Kravin Investments used backdated paperwork to obscure a separate $2bn fortune held in Cyprus.
- Barrister Andrew Mitchell KC called the scheme "straightforward" tax evasion, while Lord Sikka, a University of Sheffield accounting professor, labeled it a "violation of a statutory duty."
- Abramovich, currently living in Turkey, faces a four-year criminal investigation in Jersey where £5.4bn of his assets remain frozen; his lawyers deny the allegations, claiming the investigation is "undertaken for political purposes.
123 Articles
123 Articles
Former Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich used a network of financial advisers to systematically hide his vast fortune and avoid tax, a major BBC investigation has revealed. The journalistic team has obtained documents that contain evidence of the deliberate falsification and backdating of financial statements in order to conceal transactions worth hundreds of millions of dollars. At the heart of the scheme are a consultancy firm in Cyprus, includin…
Employees of the Cyprus branch of the world's largest accounting firm Deloitte allegedly helped falsify documents and hide the assets of Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, the former owner of Chelsea football club. According to the BBC and The Guardian, they backdated the papers so that yachts, villas and aircraft worth 14.6 billion crowns disappeared from the company's accounts. Abramovich's lawyers deny the allegations.
Abramovich lawyers renew claim Jersey investigation is politically motivated
ROMAN Abramovich’s lawyers have renewed their claim that Jersey’s criminal investigation into his wealth is politically motivated – arguing that the Island welcomed his assets before Russian investment became “politically inconvenient”. In a statement provided to the JEP following the new BBC Panorama investigation, law firm Kobre & Kim said their client’s position had not […]
Investigation Examines Alleged Laundering of Russian Oligarch Abramovich’s Billions Through Cyprus
NICOSIA – A new BBC investigation has raised serious questions about the role of Cypriot companies and professional advisers in concealing billions of dollars in assets belonging to Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich. Among other findings, the investigation alleges widespread backdating of financial documents aimed at avoiding tax liabilities in Cyprus. According to a joint investigation...
Russian tycoon Roman Abramovich rejects the BBC's allegations of forgery of documents to evade taxes.
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