Global: Assistance with Asset Tracing

GD has investigated serious human rights violations and grand corruption across a broad range of countries. Having compiled dossiers to a criminal law standard, GD routinely files cases or applications before courts or public bodies, including the International Criminal Court, the European Court of Human Rights, UN Working Groups, and national governments for sanctions under ‘Magnitsky’ provisions. 

Because the US Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act - and other similar regimes - provide for sanctions against assets held by designated individuals, GD’s team includes aninvestigator (an investigative journalist)who helps to identify assets, business interests, and country connections of the persons targetedin our sanction applications. We use mainly open-source information and subscription databases. Other evidence, such as insiders and other witnesses, may be used to fill gaps or confirm information. 

The process involves identifying, examining and then cross-referencing land records, corporate filings, court documents, stock exchange filings, voter rolls, telephone and address directories across multiple jurisdictions. Deep searches of social media are also used to identify familial and business connections, travel patterns and social ties, all of which play a key role in identifying assets and connections to the US (especially for Global Magnitsky filings) or other countries. 

While there is a chance any investigation will meet a dead end, our primary investigator has many years of experience deep diving into open-source dataand has identified hundreds of millions of dollars worth of assets and investments held by serious human rights abusers, their immediate family and close business associates.