OCCRP Named a Finalist for Daniel Pearl Award

Published: 15 September 2011

By

The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) has named the OCCRP a finalist for its prestigious Daniel Pearl Award.

ICIJ Judges announced Thursday that Offshore Crime, Inc., has been named as one of seven finalists for the award.

Offshore Crime, Inc. was the product a six month investigation into how organized criminal groups use offshore tax havens to launder money, hide assets, and evade taxes.    OCCRP reporters investigated offshore tax havens including the U.S. state of Delaware, the Cayman Islands, Seychelles,  New Zealand, Romania and Ukraine.

Reporters went undercover as businessmen seeking services.  In repeated consultations, sales meetings and online applications reporters received detailed advice about how to cheat on taxes and not get caught.

One of the consultants, Laszlo Kiss, was arrested just weeks after asking an undercover OCCRP reporter for a part of what he believed were illicit profits.  Kiss was charged with complicity in embezzling and money laundering.  His associate, New Zealand-based Business registration agent Ian Taylor, was forced to halt his operations in June.

Paul Cristian Radu coordinated a team of reporters from all over Eastern Europe to produce Offshore Crime, Inc.:  Mihai Munteanu (Romania), Beth Kampschror (United States), Stanimir Vaglenov (Bulgaria), Vlad Lavrov (Ukraine), Tamas Bodoky (Hungary),and  Stevan Dojcinovic (Serbia).  Drew Sullivan and Rosemary Armao served as project editors.

The Daniel Pearl Award is given every year by the ICIJ created specifically to honor cross-border investigative reporting.  The prize is named for Daniel Pearl, an American journalist kidnapped and killed by Al-Qaeda operatives in 2002.

Other finalists are Bloomberg Markets Magazine, The New Yorker, ABC News, freelancer Mimi Chakarova, Forum for African Investigative Reporters (FAIR) and a consortium of NPR, Radio Canada/CBC, and Swiss TV TSI.