President Nicos Anastasiades has refuted Al Jazeera’s claims that a minister of his government went out of his way to accommodate a shady Russian investor get a Cyprus passport who was on an international stop list.
In a statement on Tuesday, the Presidency of the Republic “categorically denied” claims by broadcaster Al Jazeera that an unnamed Cypriot minister flew to London to personally handle a case involving a Russian investor with a murky past overcome obstacles in obtaining a Cypriot passport.
According to Al Jazeera, the case was closed from London, without the Russian investor needing to step a foot in Cyprus as he was on Interpol’s stop list.
The government response came after Al Jazeera broadcast Monday that intermediaries were prepared to enable a fictitious criminal investor to buy a famous English football club.
The reporters were introduced to a private investigator and a network of “enablers” in Cyprus who were willing to supply him an EU passport in a new name.
The Presidency said Al Jazeera’s reports on dubious investors obtaining a Cypriot passport are attributable “to the gaps, weaknesses or omissions of supervisory control of the investment program that has already been permanently abolished”.
It said the visual evidence provided by Al Jazeera had led the government to appoint a committee of inquiry whose findings led the legal services to suggest some passports are revoked.
“Criminal proceedings have already been launched and, as the Attorney General himself has stated, the Legal Service will proceed with further prosecutions for people found to be involved.”
Rich Saudi
The President’s office also addressed another issue, touching Nicos Anastasiades himself and his ties with a Saudi multimillionaire, given a golden passport.
The Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) researched the president’s ties with a wealthy Saudi granted a Cypriot Passport through investment.
The Presidency statement noted that OCCRP is rehashing a story that is “baseless”.
The Presidency argues that two inquiries carried out have vindicated Anastasiades.
“The findings of both probe committees refute the report and raise questions as to what purpose and objective it serves at this time”.
The Saudi businessman Abdulrahman bin Khalid bin Mahfouz, whom Anastasiades calls a close friend, had his citizenship questioned by the Auditor General Odysseas Michaelides earlier in 2020.
The OCCRP, a consortium of investigative centres, media and journalists operating globally, noted that τhe Auditor General hasn’t accused anyone of criminal activity but said the murky circumstances of the case warrant more investigation.
OCCRP said an ad-hoc government commission in late 2020 determined that citizenship applications for members of the bin Mahfouz family contained “false declarations” about plans to move to Cyprus.
Bin Mahfouz and five other Saudis applied for Cypriot passports together in 2014, spending nearly €19.8 mln on commercial and residential real estate to qualify under the citizenship scheme.
Another 36 relatives of the investment group executives were also granted Cypriot citizenship through the same or associated applications.
According to the Auditor General, the real estate deals looked suspicious: bin Mahfouz and his associates paid more than twice the market value for some properties.
“One deal literally landed close to home for Anastasiades — a luxury villa and two building lots across the street from his private residence in Cyprus’ second city, Limassol,” said OCCRP.
According to OCCRP, the Interior Ministry had expressed its objections over golden passports given to the Saudis; however, “his (Anastasiades) hand-picked Council of Ministers disregarded objections”.
