Previous Investigations


Environment

Deforestation Inc.

A cross-border investigation exposes the flaws of the systems designed to combat forest destruction. The investigation shows how companies use the results of flawed audits to advertise products and operations as compliant with environmental standards, labor laws and human rights. ››› 



Desinformation

Storykillers

A secretive  firm offers to rig elections, spread lies and destroy livelihoods for money. Notorious mercenaries sell propaganda campaigns to despots. Undercover reporters document revelations on shaky videos, courageous female reporters continue to investigate despite being threatened and insulted. ››› 



Dubious Honorary Consuls

Shadow Diplomats

In theory, honorary consuls are meant to foster ties between countries. But in practice criminals and others accused of exploiting the position have infiltrated their ranks. Among them:  terror financiers, murderers, arms traffickers and drug runners.  ››› 



Russia's War in Ukraine

Fueling the War

A joint venture of the German company Wintershall Dea delivers gas condensate to Gazprom. The  Russian state-owned corporation in turn provides aviation fuel to military bases believed to be behind highly critized air strikes on civilians in Ukraine. ››› 



Sanctions against Russia

Putin's Daughter's Unnoticed Travels

Over the course of several years, Putin's daughter Katerina Tikhonova made numerous trips to Bavaria together with an entourage of - likely armed -  bodyguards. Our reporting revealed: The German authorities knew nothing of the excursions.  ››› 



Exposing Human Rights Violations

Xinjiang Police Files

Leaked files and photos from Xinjiang internment camps contradict China's official statements regarding the discrimination of the Uyghurs. Published during the visit of UN Commissioner Michelle Bachelet, the revelations sparked an international debate. ››› 



Exposing Secret Bank accounts

Suisse Secrets

A historic leak of Swiss banking records reveals that Credit Suise catered to criminals, dictators and political actors with outsized wealth. At the same time, Switzerland's draconian banking secrecy laws silence journalists, who way want to expose wrongdoing. ›››

© Tages-Anzeiger
© Tages-Anzeiger


Exposing Corruption & Tax Evasion

The Panama Papers

After an anonymous whistleblower leaked more than 11,5 million financial records to them, Bastian Obermayer and Frederik Obermaier teamed up with more than 400 journalists to expose a system that enables crime, corruption and wrongdoing. ›››



EXPOSING POLITICIAL CORRUPTION

The Azerbaijani Laundromat

A team of journalists uncovered a complex money-laundering operation and slush fund of the Azerbaijani regime, which directed payments to European politicians.  The investigation showed that Danske Bank turned a blind eye to transactions that should have raised red flags. ›››



Exposing the murderers of journalists

The Daphne Project

After the brutal killing of Daphne Caruana Galizia in October 2017, journalists from 15 countries worked together to complete and publish investigations by Daphne Caruana Galizia. In the end, the murder plot could be traced back to the highest ranks of Maltese politics. ›››



Exposing Political corruption

The Ibiza Affair

The revelation about a secretly filmed video showing the leader of Austria's far-right Freedom Party FPÖ promising government contracts to the alleged niece of Russian oligarch prompted snap elections and a parlamentarian inquiry commission in Austria. ››› 



Exposing the Murderers of UN-Experts

The Congo-Files

After two U.N. investigators are murdered during a mission in the Congo, the government blames rebels in the killing. But leaked documents underscore suspicion that the intelligence service and the military may have been behind the crime. ››› 



Exposing abuse of Surveillance Software

The Pegasus Project

A leak of more than 50.000 phone records shows how the surveillance technology of the Israeli company NSO Group has been systematically abused for years. Journalists, human rights defenders, lawyers, politicians and several heads of state have been selected as targets. ›››



Exposing Human rights Abuses

The China Cables

Highly classified government documents reveal China's extrajudicial internment and compulsary indoctrination of Muslims. The investigation exposed China's mass surveillance system that is used to control routine behaviour and to isolate Xinjiang from the rest of the world. ›››