Panama Papers: Mossack Fonseca founders arrested over bribery scandal
Source: The Guardian
Panama Papers: Mossack Fonseca founders arrested over bribery scandal
Juergen Mossack and Ramon Fonseca taken into custody
following probe into law firms role in creating companies
linked to corruption in Brazil
Juliette Garside
Friday 10 February 2017 15.11 GMT
The founders of Mossack Fonseca, the law firm at the centre of the Panama Papers scandal, were arrested in Panama City on Thursday as the countrys attorney general launched a probe into their alleged connections with Brazils sprawling Lava Jato corruption scandal.
Juergen Mossack and his colleague Ramon Fonseca, a former adviser to Panamas president Juan Carlos Varela, were taken into custody and transferred to police cells in the capital overnight for further questioning on Friday, their defence attorney Elías Solano was quoted telling reporters.
Panamanian prosecutors raided the offices of Mossack Fonseca on Thursday. In a press conference on Kenia Porcell, Panamas attorney general, said she had information that identified Mossack Fonseca allegedly as a criminal organisation that is dedicated to hiding money assets from suspicious origins.
She said the firms Brazilian representative had allegedly been instructed to conceal documents and to remove evidence of illegal activities related to the Lava Jato case.
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https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/feb/10/panama-papers-mossack-fonseca-offices-raided-over-odebrecht-bribery-scandal