Siniša Mali and 24 flats in Bulgaria

Category: Money and deals

Period: from Jul 2012

Outcome: Complaint dismissed or proceedings halted (as of Sep 2018)

In 2015, KRIK and OCCRP reported that in 2012 and 2013 the then mayor of Belgrade, Siniša Mali, bought 23 apartments at the Bulgarian resort of „Sveti Nikola“ through two offshore companies, and one more in his own name. KRIK valued them at around five million euros, while his annual income never exceeded €34,000; Mali says he owns one flat. The Higher Public Prosecutor's Office in Belgrade did not open an investigation despite a report by the Anti-Corruption Agency on suspected money laundering, and proceedings over undeclared assets were dropped after he paid 200,000 dinars.

Apartments in Sveti Nikola

On 19 October 2015, KRIK and OCCRP reported that the then mayor of Belgrade, Siniša Mali, acting as director of two offshore companies registered in the British Virgin Islands, bought 23 apartments in the Bulgarian resort of Sveti Nikola during 2012 and 2013, and one more in his own name.

KRIK estimated the apartments were worth around five million euros, while his annual income, according to data from the Anti-Corruption Agency, never exceeded €34,000.

Mali's response and the deleted footage

Mali claimed he owned only one flat, which he had declared to the Agency, and that in the other purchases he had been advising clients. The then prime minister, Aleksandar Vučić, said Mali could not be mayor if he owned 24 flats.

Two days after the story ran, the mayor's security detail seized a camera and a phone from KRIK journalists and deleted their footage.

The Agency, the prosecutors and 200,000 dinars

The Anti-Corruption Agency launched a review of Mali's assets and in August 2016 notified the Higher Public Prosecutor's Office in Belgrade of suspected criminal offences, including money laundering. According to KRIK, the Administration for the Prevention of Money Laundering also described suspicious transactions.

In 2017, the Higher Prosecutor's Office concluded that there was no evidence of a criminal offence within its jurisdiction and did not open an investigation. Proceedings over his failure to declare assets were dropped in 2018 after Mali paid 200,000 dinars to charity.

Pandora Papers

As part of the Pandora Papers project, KRIK published ownership certificates in 2021 which, according to KRIK, show that Mali also owned both offshore companies. Mali, finance minister since 2018, repeated that he owns one flat and that the journalists are lying.

The Higher Public Prosecutor's Office said the documents were not new or relevant evidence. According to the latest sources found, no institution has opened new proceedings.

Participants

Siniša Mali: As the owner of two offshore firms, he bought 24 apartments in Bulgaria, and as mayor he did not declare the offshore firms to the Agency (responsible)
Aleksandar Vučić: He told KRIK journalists they had not proved it because “a court ruling shows otherwise”, without saying which ruling he meant (commented on the case)
Ana Brnabić: She said the story was about what Mali had owned before he went into politics (commented on the case)
Nikola Ristić: He was among the mayor's security detail who took a camera and a phone from journalists and deleted their footage (responsible)
Belgrade Communal Police: According to Mali, a municipal police officer was suspended and disciplinary proceedings against him are under way (commented on the case)
Brigham Holding & Finance Inc.: Some of the apartments were bought through it; the Agency suspects the purchases went through offshore companies to conceal assets (responsible)
Etham Invest & Finance Corp.: Some of the apartments were bought through it; the Agency suspects the purchases went through offshore companies to conceal assets (responsible)
Higher Public Prosecutor's Office in Belgrade, Special Department for Combating Corruption: After a year of checks, it found no evidence of an offence within its jurisdiction and passed the case on (investigation and courts)
First Basic Public Prosecutor's Office in Belgrade: It dropped the proceedings against Mali over his failure to declare assets after he paid 200,000 dinars to charity (responsible)
Tatjana Babić: In August 2016 she notified prosecutors of the suspicion that Mali was involved in several criminal offences, including money laundering (oversight and the public)
Agency for the Prevention of Corruption (until 2020 the Anti-Corruption Agency): In 2018 it told prosecutors that Mali had declared all his assets, even though he had not declared the offshore companies (responsible)
Administration for the Prevention of Money Laundering (Ministry of Finance): In a November 2016 report, it stated that Mali controlled at least 45 accounts and paid himself €525,000 (oversight and the public)
KRIK: It reported that Mali, as director of two offshore companies, had bought 23 apartments, and in the Pandora Papers it also published the ownership certificates (oversight and the public)