An international investigative investigation reveals: How did Dubai become a safe investment haven for major internationally wanted criminals?

This investigation, conducted by the Dubai Unlocked team, shows; How this emirate (Dubai) became a refuge for Ruja Ignatova, known as the “ Cryptoqueen ,” and nearly a dozen of her associates, even as the UAE sought to clean up... Its (bad) image as a haven for criminals and fraudsters.

By: Scilla Alecci ; Nicole Sadek ( Nicole Sadek ); And Karrie Kehoe

In the spring of 2015, accused Bulgarian cryptocurrency fraudster Ruja Ignatova was making a fortune by selling counterfeit cryptocurrencies.

The entrepreneur recently founded OneCoin , a Sofia-based company that claimed to issue a cryptocurrency and declared it would be “number one” worldwide. International investigators later linked the matter to a $4 billion pyramid scheme with more than 3.5 million victims around the world.

As she prepared to launch her business in the United States, perhaps to attract more unsuspecting investors, Ignatova and some of her partners settled in Dubai, the financial center of the United Arab Emirates.

There, she established shell companies and opened bank accounts to receive and launder funds transferred from OneCoin investors. She created and runs a hair and body salon called Kings & Queens with her two OneCoin partners, documents obtained by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists show. Two units in a building near Dubai Marina are listed as corporate offices. She used Dubai's shell company to buy a $2.7 million penthouse on the top floor of a skyscraper overlooking Palm Jumeirah, an archipelago of artificial islands in the Persian Gulf, according to documents reviewed by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists.

Now newly leaked secret land records in Dubai shed light on the role Dubai plays for criminals and suspects like Ignatova and her associates, many of whom are serving long prison sentences or are on the run from international law enforcement. Ignatova, who called herself the “Queen of Cryptocurrencies,” disappeared in 2018 shortly after US authorities issued an arrest warrant for her.

The Dubai records were obtained by the Center for Advanced Defense Studies ( C4ADS ), a Washington , D.C.-based non-profit organization that analyzes data on transnational security matters. C4ADS shared data with ICIJ and more than 70 media outlets as part of the Dubai Unlocked investigation coordinated by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project ( OCCRP ).
And the Norwegian financial port E24 .

An overview of “Dubai Keys” data ( Dubai Unlocked )

The property records at the heart of the Keys to Dubai investigation come from multiple leaks totaling more than 100 data sets, mostly from the Dubai Land Department, as well as public utility companies.

The new investigation by ICIJ and more than 70 media partners, led by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project; It shows how one of the Middle East's most exclusive real estate markets became a hotspot for illicit wealth. The data was obtained by the US non-profit Center for Advanced Defense Studies and shared with Norwegian news outlet E24 , then the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists and other partners.

Taken together, the leaked property records, mostly from 2020 and 2022, provide a detailed overview of hundreds of thousands of properties in Dubai and information about their ownership or use. Economists at the European Union Tax Observatory and the Norwegian Center for Tax Research, who analyzed the data, estimated that foreign-owned residential properties in Dubai would be worth $160 billion in 2022.

ICIJ and its partners used identifying information — such as names, nationalities, dates of birth, and passport numbers — to confirm ownership. The journalists also obtained title deeds for some properties from the Dubai Land Department. The second tranche of real estate and transaction data from Dubai reveals additional information about the buying and selling of properties as well as rental income.

“Keys to Dubai” is the second part of a cross-border investigation into Dubai properties purchased with illicit funds. ICIJ did not participate in the first part of the “Keys to Dubai” project published in May 2022.

To access the “Keys to Dubai” data page, click here

The latest dataset dates from 2022, and contains information on property owners in Dubai, ranging from wealthy businessmen and family members of prominent politicians to wanted criminals.

Several members of our international reporting team (but not ICIJ) previously analyzed 2020 Dubai land data and found that property owners included more than 100 members of Russia's political elite, public officials or businessmen close to the Kremlin. In addition to dozens of Europeans involved in money laundering and corruption crimes.

According to Dubai records and other company filings reviewed by ICIJ, in March 2015, Ignatova set up a company in Dubai called Oceana Properties Ltd , and used it to buy a 5,303-square-foot luxury apartment in the Oceana Pacific building. Where she was officially residing..

In 2017, when the US Department of Justice sought to indict her on fraud and money laundering charges, Ignatova shut down the OneCoin companies.) in Dubai, and its own beauty salon. Then, within days of being charged and an arrest warrant issued on October 12 of that year, she boarded a plane to Athens and disappeared.

According to ICIJ's media partner, Bird ; Files seized by Sofia police during a search of the home of a murdered police officer appear to show that Ignatova was later killed on a yacht in Greece on the orders of a Bulgarian mafia leader. But some media outlets have questioned this account.

In 2019, after several banks were reported about suspicious transactions related to the “ Cryptoqueen ” and her companies, Ignatova’s company, Oceana Properties, ended the sale of her luxury apartment in Dubai. It shows a title deed, obtained by Paper Trail Media , an ICIJ partner; A young British lawyer bought the apartment for about $1.6 million. It is not clear who handled the sale on behalf of Ignatova and pocketed the funds. The lawyer who bought the property did not respond to journalists' questions.

Ignatova remains on the FBI 's list) for the most wanted fugitives. An agency spokesperson told ICIJ that the agency considers her alive "until there is documented evidence of her death."

Overall, the findings reveal: How Dubai remains an attractive destination for both foreigners who want to invest in property in a low-tax area and for money launderers who take advantage of the “no questions asked” policy of some local real estate agents. Real estate investments also allow foreigners to obtain residency in the UAE if they purchase one or more properties worth at least $545,000.

According to Judy Vettori, a Georgetown University professor and illicit finance expert, the rules regarding purchasing real estate in the UAE are more lenient than those in jurisdictions of other countries.

News investigations repeatedly revealed that real estate developers, Vettori says, “were willing to accept all cash-paid purchases; "There are many rules about how to do this."

The UAE authorities did not respond to journalists' specific questions, but defended the country's commitment to combating financial crimes. In a statement sent via email to The Times newspaper, the British media partner of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, an official at the UAE Embassy in Britain said: “The UAE takes its role in protecting the integrity of the global financial system very seriously,” and the country “works closely with international partners to disrupt and deter all forms of illicit financing.”

Clean reputation

The Dubai Keys discoveries come at a time when the UAE is trying to clean up its image as a hub for illicit transactions. Numerous investigations and media reports have linked its banks, establishment rules and lax free trade zones to sanctioned individuals, corrupt politicians and gold and drug traffickers.

In 2022, the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force, an intergovernmental body that sets standards to combat financial crimes, added the country to the list of states with jurisdictions subject to scrutiny for flaws in the anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing system. But early this year, the task force announced that it had removed the UAE from the “grey list” in light of “significant progress,” including improved cooperation with international anti-money laundering investigations. The task force acted at the request of Germany, the United States and other Western countries, although its own monitors for the United Arab Emirates expressed concerns about the reliability of the information provided by the government, according to the website.Politico ( politico.eu ) .

Shortly after, the European Commission sought to remove the UAE from the EU's list of countries at high risk of money laundering, but the European Parliament blocked that proposal in April, citing "significant and recent" evidence that the UAE facilitates financial crimes, financial crimes and evasion. Of penalties.

Unlike other notoriously secretive jurisdictions such as the British Virgin Islands, the UAE's role as a crucial military ally of the United States and a bulwark against terrorism in the Middle East has protected the country from being subject to a greater level of scrutiny by Western powers, according to some experts.

Vettori said she was "disappointed" but not surprised by the UAE's removal from the list, due to its political importance in the Middle East and its persistent efforts to wash its reputation.

“This gives them the ability to avoid a lot of international scrutiny that a lot of other countries could do that weren't as smart and didn't have a lot of oil money and didn't use it well,” Vettori added.

Fugitives and criminals

The review of land records in Dubai by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists and its media partners; Questions about the UAE’s commitment to implementing the reforms promised by the Global (Financial) Task Force.

Like Ignatova, at least 11 of her partners have owned some of Dubai's most exclusive properties over the past nine years, confidential data shows. Among the buyers were OneCoin co-founder Karl Sebastian Greenwood, who is serving a 20-year prison sentence in the United States for his involvement in the OneCoin scheme; and Kari Wahlroos , a Finnish businessman who introduced himself as OneCoin 's "European Ambassador" at promotional events organized by the company. Greenwood declined to answer questions from ICIJ partners. While his colleague, "Walrus", was not charged. When asked about the properties mentioned in the leaked data, he confirmed to Finnish YLE Radio, in a recent phone interview: He owns several apartments in Dubai. He also said he had a "really good relationship" with Ignatova, but denied knowing the company was being used to launder money, prosecutors alleged. “I didn't have a dime to spare with OneCoin itself,” Walrus said.

Another person inside OneCoin who owned real estate in Dubai is Frank Schneider , who worked as a security advisor to Ignatova. He is a Luxembourgian citizen and former spy who escaped house arrest in France and is currently wanted by law enforcement.

Dubai land data shows that Schneider owns a three-bedroom apartment on the outer crescent of Palm Jumeirah. According to Luxembourgian magazine Reporter.lu and Swedish broadcaster SVT , both partners of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists; Schneider sold his apartment in January 2022 while he was detained in France awaiting extradition to the United States. In 2023, he escaped house arrest and is currently a fugitive from justice.

Jonathan Levy, a London-based lawyer who represents victims of OneCoin fraud, says Dubai has provided a haven for fraudsters and washes its hands of responsibility for their victims.

He added: "Fraud in Dubai has become greater than ever before," adding: "There is no government entity that would actually intervene on behalf of the victims in a case like this."

Major Saud Al Mutawa, who works in the anti-money laundering unit of the Dubai Police, denied any allegations that the UAE, and Dubai in particular, is a center for financial crimes.

“Dubai is not a safe haven for illicit money and illicit actors,” Al-Mutawa said in an interview with Swedish channel SVT .

He added that UAE authorities are “aware” of the risks posed by criminals and illicit proceeds flowing from foreign jurisdictions into the country. That's why they are "very confident" that their response to requests for cooperation from foreign law enforcement agencies is prompt and "exceeds international standards," he said. He also added: "As a guarantee to our friends and strategic partners at the international level, we will continue to improve and strengthen our international cooperation."

And besides the OneCoin scammers, 2022 data reveals that dozens of criminals, including mafia bosses and individuals sanctioned for financing Al Qaeda and other terrorist groups, bought luxury apartments, commercial properties and parking lots in the financial hub of the Arabian Gulf. Among them are Daniel Kinahan , the former boxing promoter accused by Irish and American authorities of running a deadly global drug ring from the United Arab Emirates, and his wife Caoimhe Robinson .

The dataset lists passport numbers, building names, room descriptions, and other details for apartments and commercial properties owned by individuals and companies. The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists and reporters participating in the “ Dubai Unlocked ” investigation compared real estate data with the history of sales transactions in the United Arab Emirates from 1990 to 2023.

The records also show; Even individuals subject to an Interpol Red Notice – a request from a country to temporarily detain someone – could be property owners in Dubai. For example, Isabel dos Santos, the wealthy daughter of the former governor of Angola, is listed as the co-owner of a two-bedroom apartment near the Dubai waterfront. Since 2019, at least three countries have frozen their assets. Dos Santos, who denies any wrongdoing, has been banned from entering the United States due to her “alleged involvement in major corruption,” and was recently charged in Angola with 12 crimes, including embezzlement and fraud.

As a member state of Interpol, the UAE can decide to comply with the international police agency's request and temporarily arrest her, but is not obliged to do so.

"Black hole"

In recent years, the number of countries that have signed extradition treaties and other agreements with the UAE to address international crimes has increased. However, the country's financial and institutional systems remain an obstacle to lawyers' efforts to chase down criminals' assets and help their clients recover lost funds.

According to the anti-corruption group Tax Justice Network, the UAE is one of “the most complicit countries in the world in helping individuals hide their money from the rule of law.”

In 2021, the Pandora Papers investigation, conducted by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, found that financial services providers in Dubai included shell companies for customers who wanted to keep their identities secret. The companies' beneficiaries included a Belgian businessman accused of profiting from the smuggling of "conflict gold" from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and a Canadian internet mogul convicted in the United States of laundering money for fraudsters, child pornography dealers and other criminals.

said Levy, an attorney for OneCoin fraud victimsTo this day, the legal system in the United Arab Emirates remains a “black hole.” Since 2021, companies registered in the UAE have been required to disclose the identity of their true owners to the authorities, but only the government has access to ownership information.

In the case of OneCoin , while US authorities have ordered co-founder Greenwood to seize $300 million, Levy said other efforts to recover victims' funds are moving slowly and that the funds lost in Dubai are "over."

Contributing reporters: Luc Carigari ( Reporter.lu ), Elif Frisch Flaidal ( E24 ), George Greenwood ( The Times ), Kevin Hall and Khadija Sharif ( OCCRP ), Axel Hommlejo and Diamant Salihu ( SVT ), Karina Hubertz ( Paper Trail Media ), Rico Roslund ( YLE ).