Over a year ago, an anonymous source contacted the German media outlet Süddeutsche Zeitung (SZ) to submit encrypted internal documents from Mossack Fonseca, a Panamanian law firm that sells anonymous offshore companies around the world. These shell firms allow their owners to cover up their business dealings, sales, and advice no matter how shady those details themselves may be.
Over the past few days, 2.6 terabytes worth of data on the customers of this firm have been leaked via over 100 journalists to the world at large. This data has detailed information on political figures, celebrities, athletes, banks, etc. and the shell companies they setup for certain shady purposes like hiding taxable profits, laundering cash on a mass scale, and covering for more….unscrupulous companies. The information contained in this leak is absolutely staggering, and the several hundred journalism sources have claimed they will be systematically releasing the information over the next few days. This is significant as it represents the single, largest information leak to journalists since the revelations brought forth via Edward Snowden, and much like the more sensitive information Snowden unveiled, this leak provides damning eivdence of legal wrongdoing by several prominent political figures the world over. Names like Vladimir Putin, Iceland’s Prime Minister, and even FIFA star Lionel Messi apparently have accounts tied to this shell firm.
Scarier still is the current radio silence on this growing story by many mainstream US based media countries. At the time of this story breaking, CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, and many other US outlets have yet to make any mention of this story whatsoever. If you however are interested in learning more, check out some of the info resources on Reddit and on the German and European news outlets bringing the story to light.
http://panamapapers.sueddeutsche.de/articles/56febff0a1bb8d3c3495adf4/
https://www.reddit.com/r/worldnews/comments/4d75i7/26_terabyte_leak_of_panamanian_shell_company_data/