Belizean Companies Named In Pandora Papers

The Investigative Consortium of Investigate Journalism’s Pandora Papers was big news this weekend after a two year investigation by more than six hundred journalists across one hundred and fifty news outlets sifted through millions of confidential records from offshore services. According to the ICIJ website, the analysis revealed nine hundred and fifty six companies in offshore havens tied to two hundred and thirty- six high level politicians and public officials.  In many countries, like Belize, it is not illegal to have offshore assets. Some international business people even argue that they need offshore companies to conduct their financial affairs. But, because of the complexity and secrecy of the offshore system, it is impossible to know how much of that wealth may be tied to tax evasion and other crimes. In the case of Belize, over eight hundred thousand leaked records where analyzed from three offshore providers, including Glenn D. Godfrey & CO LLP and CILTrust International . The Washing Post alleges that some of their accounts have ties to underworld figures. 

Washington Post

“The Pandora Papers also expose how U.S. moves their money outside the country while facing criminal investigations and costly lawsuits. This is where Glenn Godfrey comes in. His companies in Belize has set up trust, bank accounts, and cooperation for an alleged murder, a high profile child sex offender, a mob associate connected to the Colombo Crime Family in New York, and a self described Constitutionalist who solicit the murder of  judge, a prosecutor and an IRS agent. Godfrey has not responded to multiple requests for comments. It is very difficult for prosecutors to track money offshore, for various reasons, a lack of cooperation from the governments of tax havens like Belize, to not having the time or the resources.”