
Jeffrey Epstein’s money trail was never just about bank balances; it was about architecture. He operated through a maze of offshore and low-tax jurisdictions that gave him secrecy, flexibility, tax advantages, and distance from ordinary scrutiny....
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Bobby Capucci
Alright, so this article is from the
Co-host/Guest Analyst
International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. The headline British Virgin Islands Corruption scandal Threatens its Dependable Tax haven reputation. The territory, whose shell companies have repeatedly played a role in notorious global crime schemes also may be blacklisted by the
Bobby Capucci
EU after the Brexit deal.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
This article was authored by Will Fitzgibbon. So it goes to show you the,
Bobby Capucci
the, the long reaching effects of the
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Brexit deal as well. And I'm not talking about which side of it you fall on. Personally as an American, I'm, you know, I don't really feel like I could speak on it too well. I don't know all of the ins and outs, but when you leave something
Bobby Capucci
like the eu, there is going to be repercussions. And I could see the EU being spiteful about, you know, the United Kingdom
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leaving, Britain leaving and them trying to get back at the UK by, you
Bobby Capucci
know, ramping up the regulations for a
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place like the British Virgin Islands.
Bobby Capucci
Now, like I always say, however, I think the EU should worry about their own backyard before they're pointing fingers about the overgrown lawn the, that England has.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
But those ramifications, ramifications still remain because
Bobby Capucci
of the, the Brexit deal. So I, I've wondered how they would leverage the Brexit deal in, in ways like this. Right. You know, in the, the major ways how it's going to happen. But in littler ways like this, I'm always interested to see how, you know, the cards fall. It's very interesting to see how all of that works.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
The British Virgin Islands is reeling from a corruption scandal that threatens to upend the territory's reputation as one of the world's most dependable tax havens. Last week, outgoing BVI Governor Augustus Jaspert announced a commission of inquiry to investigate allegations of corruption and the misuse of millions of dollars in, in public funds. The outgoing governor, huh?
Bobby Capucci
Pretty interesting that it's the outgoing governor that initiates this. And now remember, the United Kingdom is in charge of the British Virgin Islands. They oversee all of this stuff. So I find it interesting that it's the outgoing guy who brings this all
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up, sets this in motion right on
Bobby Capucci
the heels of the FinCEN files dropping. You see, things don't just happen, you know, out of order. In situations like this, you know, there are no coincidences.
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Everything connects to each other.
Bobby Capucci
And once one domino begins to fall around the world, you start to see the rest of it happen.
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And that's what we're seeing here.
Bobby Capucci
The long ranging effects of the FinCEN
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files is playing out right before our eyes.
Bobby Capucci
Now, my hope is that it goes
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even further than what we have seen.
Bobby Capucci
I want, especially after what we saw take place with Robin Hood and Gamestop, I want these people on Wall street, these hedge fund managers and all the rest of these bankers and manipulators, I
Co-host/Guest Analyst
want them to be regulated into oblivion at this point. They're so greedy and so disgusting
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that
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we can't trust them to conduct themselves correctly. So their whole, entire industry must be highly regulated.
Bobby Capucci
The inquiry will focus on a range
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of claims and alarming discoveries. In a Facebook video posted during his last week as governor, Jasper referred to accusations he heard during his time in office from officials, journalists and members of the public, including one case in which 40 million earmarkers marked for COVID 19 relief allegedly siphoned to political allies.
Bobby Capucci
Well, what do you know, huh? We all knew that the, the grift was on. And in our own countries especially, you know, that the money that was set aside for Covid Relief was being paid out to cronies and to allies and to donors and like that, you know,
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Main street wasn't going to see any
Bobby Capucci
of it, but it gets blasted and
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amplified in a place like the British Virgin Islands.
Bobby Capucci
$40 million down there is a lot of money, okay? And the fact that it was spread around to the political allies of this governor makes it even more audacious that he's the one that's initiating this investigation. And I wonder if there is pressure coming from England and that is why this, this, this investigation is being open. Usually when it has to do with your political allies, you're pretty hesitant to, to get anything going. Right. You're pretty hesitant to make a move one way or the other and, you know, regulate your people or censor them or bring them up on charges or whatever may have you. But this is a, a situation where we're going to see a lot more of this moving forward. I think folks in, in the WA FinCEN files and all of the new money laundering regulations that we're seeing pop up around the world, I think we're going to see a lot more of these inquiries and all of these bankers that, that have been running around for all of these years engaging in all of this. Let's, let's be very, let's be nice and say borderline behavior. Well, I have a feeling that all of their chickens are going to come home to roosters. Because if the whole world gets on board with this kind of thing and everybody starts prosecuting these people in the proper manner, then I think it's going to send a huge shockwave through the whole entire industry. And it's going to show these people that they're not above the law, because up until now they truly believe that they're above the law. How many of them went to jail over the financial meltdown? How many of these people who basically bankrupted all of our 401ks went to jail? I'll tell you, none of them. And meanwhile, while all that was happening and they were getting bailouts of your money, they were still running these offshore
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operations, these shell companies, not paying taxes, not paying back their loans.
Bobby Capucci
Oh, no, that's forgivable. You're too big to fail.
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What does that even mean, too big to fail? While I'm ranting, there's no such thing
Bobby Capucci
as too big to fail. You fail and then somebody else moves into your place in the market and
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provides a service that you are providing, but better. That's how all of this works. And I'm tired of the crony capitalism, especially in the financial sector.
Bobby Capucci
I mean, you see the way that Wall street is operating.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
You see Robin Hood getting shut down to help the hedge fund managers cover their positions.
Bobby Capucci
It's such bs.
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It's such garbage.
Bobby Capucci
You know, they don't want anybody to
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get out of poverty or anybody to make any money.
Bobby Capucci
They don't want that because then you
Co-host/Guest Analyst
can't be controlled if you're making your own money and you're the ruler of your own life and you're not relying on the government for anything. So how dare you try and get in on the market and get in on the, the short. The way that the hedge funds do on a regular basis. How dare the common man try and make a profit. We need to stop that trading right now. We're the only ones that are allowed to steal said says the hedge fund managers. And then Robin Hood's ass more like Robin. People just going right along with it and, and pausing trade. Oh, now they announced that trade's gonna resume tomorrow, but you know, we'll just pause it now.
Bobby Capucci
And they did it for your own
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interest, to make you better, to make sure that your position is protected. We don't need you to protect us, okay, Robin Hood. These people on Wall street and these financial advisors and these firms and these hedge fund managers, they've gotten away with
Bobby Capucci
this shit for way too long, folks. And it's time to that.
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The, the script is flipped. How many companies have they ruined with their shorts? And now the shoes on the other foot?
Bobby Capucci
Well, we can't have that, can we?
Co-host/Guest Analyst
The only people that can have a tilted playing field are the so called elite, I guess. In another case under investigation, the BBC reported cocaine worth almost $250 million was
Bobby Capucci
found in the home of a local policeman. A local policeman was. What do you mean? Like a patrolman?
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Where do you get $250 million worth of snort as a regular old policeman?
Bobby Capucci
That's a lot of kilos, folks.
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That's a lot of kilos of cocaine. What is this dude's uncle live in Medellin? Packaging him up a little bit of something something and sending it up north?
Bobby Capucci
What in the hell is a regular
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old policeman doing with $250 million worth of nose candy? I'm sure he's the only one involved in that, right? I'm sure he saved up his policeman's salary in the British Virgin Islands and
Bobby Capucci
put all of that blow on lay away.
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Come on, man. Who else is involved? He's holding it. Probably.
Bobby Capucci
He's the bag boy.
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Which one of these rat bag politicians
Bobby Capucci
is really the one pulling the strings? Who's the puppeteer? Because obviously this dude is the puppet.
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The inquiry is backed by the United Kingdom, which oversees the BVI as an overseas territory. The BVI governs its domestic affairs and raises its own taxes, but relies on the United Kingdom for defense and diplomatic matters.
Bobby Capucci
Yeah, you know, the, the, the overall, the United Kingdom is
Co-host/Guest Analyst
going to be involved in this, right? They're going to provide logistical support, forensic
Bobby Capucci
support, all of that jazz.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
They're definitely going to help them try and blow this up, try and get people arrested and you know, whoever was involved in this stealing of this money, the $40 million here, you know, they're, they're going to try and make it so this person pays a price. And I think that's a damn good start.
Bobby Capucci
All of these politicians that were involved
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with this sort of thing, with setting
Bobby Capucci
up Jeffrey Epstein, all of these people
Co-host/Guest Analyst
need to be held to account. And as much as I dig what Denise George is doing in the Virgin Islands, sending out the subpoenas and going hard in the paint, I think until she cleans up her backyard and charges some of the politicians that were involved in all of this, then they really shouldn't be trying to get any money out of the fund because it's just
Bobby Capucci
a bad look, right?
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Co-host/Guest Analyst
But over in the British Virgin Islands, you see the same thing starting to happen over here.
Bobby Capucci
You see the locals starting to get on board and they're starting to say no more. You're not going to use our island
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as some a mecca for illegal activity.
Bobby Capucci
These are beautiful places, folks. Is there anyone that's listening to this podcast right now that would turn down a trip to either of these places? Places to go sit on the beach and sip a few Mai tais. You can certainly count me in. So it's a shame when a few people ruin it for everybody. It's a shame when a few people give it a black eye. And that's what this governor is trying to stop here.
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It looks like trying to set some things right on his way out the door.
Bobby Capucci
And you know what, you can only applaud that because it's, you know, we, we go hard enough on people when they are not doing the right thing.
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So when they're doing the right thing,
Bobby Capucci
well, it's good to give them some props.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
So this outgoing governor, definitely somebody that should be given some props. A consistent and deeply troubling array of concerns have been put to the governor by local institutions and the community. UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Robb said in a statement to Parliament. We cannot ignore such serious allegations and they can't, right?
Bobby Capucci
They have to act, they have to
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come forward, they have to do something about it.
Bobby Capucci
Especially considering the FinCEN files, putting it all into picture for people. You know, it's a lot for people to put together themselves, but when the pieces are there and you start moving them around on the puzzle board yourself, it's a lot easier when all the pieces are provided for you. The BVI is one of one of
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the world's most popular tax havens and attracts legitimate business corporations, celebrities, multi millionaires and criminals alike. The island offers cheap and simple shell companies that allow their owners to avoid registering their names in public.
Bobby Capucci
Oh, that's nice, right? Real nice, isn't it?
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I would hope that that changes as well. That definitely needs to be something that changes, like with the new law here in America, that's something that they're doing away with now.
Bobby Capucci
Of course there's going to be shit
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ton of loopholes and we've talked about
Bobby Capucci
that already, but it's a start, right?
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We gotta walk before we can run.
Bobby Capucci
While owning and piping money through BVI
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companies is legal, shell companies created on the island are a regular feature in the world's most notorious scandals. BVI companies appeared in a 2 billion dollar scheme in the name of a close friend of Russian President Vladimir Putin. And the corruption pact that last week saw Israeli tycoon Benny Steinmetz sentenced to jail.
Bobby Capucci
So as you can see, there are
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some very unsavory characters that are using these shell companies for very unsavory practices. Friends of Vladimir Putin.
Bobby Capucci
Chances are you're an oligarch scumbag, sir.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Probably shouldn't be doing business with you. Have a nice day. More than half the shell companies exposed in the Panama Papers investigation were registered in the bvi, according to an analysis by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. More recently, ICIJ revealed as part of the Finsen Files investigation that BVI companies appeared in one in every five suspicious activity reports filed by banks that had concerns about possible money laundering. Yikes. 25%, folks. So the struggle is real, the problem is real. And the fact that the outgoing governor here, Mr. Jasper, is putting this on blast is a huge deal in my opinion. And I think it's a good thing. It's about time that these people are put on blast and the government of the United Kingdom has to get on board and they have to have some teeth with the legislation and they have to make sure people are paying a price for their corruption. It is the only way to stop it. More recently.
Bobby Capucci
Excuse me.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Responding to pressure and sustained scandals that highlighted the role of BVI shell companies in global crime, the island last year agreed to introduce a public register of company owners. Following the United Kingdom's exit from the European Union, pressure from European members of Parliament has grown to add the BVI back to the continent's tax haven blacklist. Previously, the UK had lobbied to keep its overseas territories off such a list. Yeah, well, they want to make money
Bobby Capucci
off of it, right? What? You don't think that the politicians in
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the government of the United Kingdom are corrupt? Oh, they are.
Bobby Capucci
Breaking news. Politicians worldwide are corrupt. That's why they lobbied to keep it off such a list. And for the EU's part and at all. Well, it's pretty childish right there.
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1.
Bobby Capucci
When England was part of the EU, a. Okay, sure, but now you're not. You're gone.
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Yeah, Nah, we don't think that's okay anymore.
Bobby Capucci
And I get it, right? It's all part of it. But they should have been like that when. When England was part of the eu.
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They should have been as forceful and gone against the silly ass tax havens
Bobby Capucci
and the way that they're. The way that they're manipulated and used for criminal activity.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
For years, the BVI and its defenders have presented the overseas territory as a reliable location for which the global so called elite can discreetly and cleanly manage their affairs and. And avoid the world's prying eyes. Yeah, no more of that. We should just do away with all of this shit. If I have to bank in America, so should you. Or wherever your country is. Here's an idea. You want to start one of these shell companies? You're going to have to start it in the United States or in England or in Europe. And you're going to have to put everything on record. Enough of this bs. The BVI is a stable and mature financial center with a distinctive and professional legal and regulatory framework, according to an advertising brochure that forms part of the ICIJ's 2017 Paradise Papers investigation. In the past, companies and individuals questioned by ICIJ about their choice of the BVI have praised the jurisdiction as having a recognized and well established regulatory and compliance regime. Oh well, I guess if you consider that one in every five SARs being filed coming from there. I guess that's a great regulatory system and a great compliance regime. Holy cow. Talk about not giving a damn and only caring about increasing the zeros on your bank account. Many disagree. Margaret Hodge, a UK Member of Parliament who has pushed for greater transparency in the BVI and told a Guardian that the shocking revelations that corruption may be rife in the BVI are a shameful indictment of the tax haven model. It is clear that an economy based on secrecy and low taxes is a recipe for bad governance, corruption and criminality. Well, look, these shell companies certainly are all of that.
Bobby Capucci
And as the Epstein case continues, we're
Co-host/Guest Analyst
going to continue to cover this stuff, this financial portion of it as a subplot, and we'll continue to cover the FinCEN files as they come out and as more stories grow from them.
Bobby Capucci
Because, folks, as our case, the Epstein
Co-host/Guest Analyst
case, and the Maxwell case continues to grow, you will see how important the financial aspect truly becomes.
Bobby Capucci
If you'd like to contact me, you
Co-host/Guest Analyst
can do that@bobby capuchirotonmail.com that's B O
Bobby Capucci
B B C A P U c
Co-host/Guest Analyst
c I@protonmail.com you can also find me on Twitter at B O B B
Bobby Capucci
Y underscore CAP ucci All of the
Co-host/Guest Analyst
links that go with this episode can be found in the description box. All right, everybody, I'll be back later on.
Bobby Capucci
Have a great night of the Jeffrey Epstein criminal enterprise. And we have also talked a lot about the FinCEN files. We talk about how these offshore LLCs and these shell companies are basically the lifeblood for people like Epstein and others who are involved in the underbelly of the world. Well, we're going to talk today about tax havens. We're going to talk a little bit about offshore finance, and we're going to explain it a little bit with the help of an article from the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. Now, you should be familiar with these folks considering they're the ones who broke the FinCEN files investigation as well. So today we're going to go through this article and we're going to talk about tax havens. What in the hell are they, how they're established, what their role is, and all of that other stuff that will continue to add contact context to the financial angle of this case, which, as you all know, if you've been listening to the podcast anyway, I think is a very, very important avenue considering his financial ties, deep financial ties to so many movers and shakers. I think that if the the investigation is conducted correctly and done with the aggressiveness that it should be done with, that it will not be hard to establish the fact that Jeffrey Epstein was using tax havens, was using shell companies, was using different means to hide money. And I think it will be rather obvious as those investigations progress and they turn up more evidence that the people who were invol with Jeffrey Epstein, we're also engaging in financial crimes as well. So I really think that as this case grows and we see that occurring especially down in the Virgin Islands, where Denise George has 100% begun to turn this into, at the very least, a civil RICO case. So we're gonna go over tax havens tonight and we're going to add a little bit more meat to the bone. That way, when we're discussing all of this stuff, it's easier to put the pieces together. Right. And of course, this sort of thing is super important in the Jeffrey Epstein case when you're talking about the whole entire case in general, because there are so many people that were connected to him financially, so many bigwigs and financial big shots that were involved with Jeffrey Epstein being in charge of their money, that if the proper amount of trees are shaken and the proper amount of doors are kicked in, it's going to be very apparent what was going on here. And if we understand just exactly how these people hide their money and what vehicles are used to do so, then when all of the pieces of the puzzle come together, it'll be a lot easier to understand all of this stuff if we have all of the context that we possibly can have. So with that said, let's jump into this article and let's talk about tax havens. This article, as I said earlier, is from the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. The authors are Will Fitzgibbo, Will Fitzgibbon and Ben Hallman. This article was published on April 6th of 2020. Tax revenues keep civilization afloat, but not all taxpayers play by the same set of rules.
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Bobby Capucci
With the help of lawyers, accountants, white shoe professionals and complicit Western governments, the wealthy and well connected have avoided paying trillions of dollars in taxes. And there's no doubt about that, right? I am certainly not somebody who is ever going to champion high taxes. I'm not a big fan, but I am a big fan of these companies and these individuals that use these loopholes that aren't available to the common folks. Well, I'm I am a big fan of them paying their fair share for sure. There's no reason that these billionaires that are parking their money overseas to avoid taxes should be able to get away with it. They should have to pony up their fair share and if they don't like what the percentage is, well maybe they should yank on the chain of their dogs in Congress to have them change it. They shouldn't be hiding their money overseas, they shouldn't be parking it in these LLCs, and they certainly shouldn't be getting away with it. Not when you and I have to account for every single dime. The rest of us cover the difference. Or more commonly, can't leaving Treasuries bereft of monies needed to build roads, schools and tackle existential threats like climate change and global pandemics. Yeah, it's there's no doubt the money laundering is such a huge hit and while it gets lost in the sauce for the most part in the western world, in these developing countries, it is a lot more of a hindrance, right? A lot big of a bigger of a burden when you have these oligarchs and kleptocrats enriching themselves on the money of the people while the people continue to get hosed and don't have their needs met, their basic needs met by their government. And that is the pool that Jeffrey Epstein was playing in. That's the pool that Jeffrey Epstein was excelling in. And that is certainly the pool that all of his friends were also swimming around in. Tax havens make it all possible. By some estimates, about 10% of the total output of all the economies in the world is parked in offshore financial centers held by shell companies that exist only on paper. The cost of governments in lost revenue is estimated to exceed 800 billion a year. That's 800 billion with a B, folks. Think about that. All of that money grifted by the already wealthy. It's certainly not any, you know, person in your neighborhood that's making moves on this 800 billion and siphoning it off. It's the kleptocrats, it's the bureaucrats, it's the oligarchs. The same people that would have you hating your neighbor and think that your neighbor is an existential threat to you are really the ones that are a true threat, are really the ones that keep our lives from being as good as they should be. And you see it here. I mean, these people are richer than you could possibly imagine. And they still have to steal, they still have to avoid paying taxes. That is just the way the game is played for the so called elite, for so called polite society. But people are starting to wake up. And when you lock people in their homes for six months and they have nothing better to do, well, they start to pay attention to who is really pulling the strings, to who the puppets are and to who the puppeteers are. And as people wake up around the world, it's going to be a whole hell of a lot harder for these people to continue with their tried and true ways of pillaging the wealth from the rest of us. The wealthy keep the money to build intergenerational fortunes, creating a new global aristocratic class and exasperating the divide between the global haves and have nots. And what have we seen during this pandemic? The the most incredulous transfer of wealth from the bottom up. Sure, people are back at work, but who isn't back at work? The hardest people hit, the people that have the least amount of education, the people that are going to be the hardest to rehire. And somehow that seems to not be a point of conversation. Somehow that doesn't seem to be driving what's going on in Washington D.C. as these 8, 9, 10, 15 million people don't matter. We're not talking about people that were laying around on their couches all day. We're talking about people who had the rug pulled out from underneath them by these lockdowns. And then, like usual, the government doesn't make. Right. Oh sure, 12 weeks of an extra $600 a week for unemployment. Great. Awesome. But what about after that? Nothing. But you see the transfer of wealth, this great transfer of wealth continue to occur while the most vulnerable amongst us are now staring at serious trouble starting December 26, December 31, when people's unemployment starts running out. And I know that in Las Vegas alone, we're looking at a legit apocalypse of people losing their homes and being kicked out of their apartments. An absurd number of homes aren't up to date on their bills and it's not going to get any better. But meanwhile, while all of that was happening, folks, while you were asleep, these people were transferring our wealth to their coffers. These people were transferring their, well, our wealth to their bank accounts. And while people suffer on Main street, the grifters and the thieves on Wall street continue to get fat. Multinational companies use the extra cash to reward shareholders and edge out smaller competitors. Yeah, and mom and pop stores continue to go by the wayside for big box shops. And then when shit goes south and there's PPP money to be had or money for Main street, somehow it inevitably ends up in the pockets of the big businesses such as Walmart, et cetera, et cetera. And meanwhile, Wall street continues to stack their chips while Main street flounders. Countries that need tax revenue the most lose more tax money as a percentage of GDP than wealthy countries. As with other inequities, the poor get it the worst. And it trickles down like that, even in the Western world, folks. I mean, you know, let's be real. 25% finance rates from the bank. That should never be occurring. All it does is keep poor people poor. And. Oh, I know the counter argument well, you should have paid your bills. Well, maybe people would be able to pay their bills if their finance rate was only 12%. And even that's crazy in draconian. These banks shouldn't be charging a higher vig than the mafioso boss down the block. Are you kidding me right now? But they get away with it. My question is, for how much longer are we going to let them get away with it? How much longer are we going to let these scumbags enable people like Jeffrey Epstein and Steal the wealth right out from underneath us. Years after Panama Papers, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists remains committed to exposing those who exploit tax havens. A long list that also includes corrupt politicians, mobsters, drug traffickers and other criminals who launder cash and assets through offshore companies to throw law enforcement off the scent. The easy movement of illicit money destabilizes governments and helps despots stay in power. And that we've seen it with every single one of these strongmen, so called strongmen, from Gaddafi on down. How much of their money do they have offshore? How many billions are hidden offshore while their people can't even get a meal? And these people are celebrated, these people aren't, you know, aren't damned on the world stage. Billions and billions of dollars stolen from their people, hidden offshore, all to enrich themselves. Here's a guide we've assembled to help explain how offshore finance works and why it matters. If you have questions we haven't answered, you can email us here. So obviously click on the link when you check out this episode and you'll have the hyperlink so you can email the actual journalist who wrote the article if you have some questions. Or you could shoot me an email and I'll try and answer them as well. What is a tax haven? There is no universal definition, but tax havens or offshore financial centers are generally countries or places with low or no corporate taxes that allow outsiders to easily set up businesses there. Tax havens also typically limit public disclosure about companies and their owners because information can be hard to extract. Tax havens are sometimes also called secrecy jurisdictions. Tax havens nearly always deny being tax havens. And you know, when you think about tax havens right here in America, you think about, like the Cayman Islands, you know, Switzerland, offshore. But no, America is one of the biggest perpetrators of this nonsense. And that's all because the financial sector is not regulated at all. Very little regulation. And under Trump, hardly anyone went to crime for what? I mean, went to prison for white collar crime. And I understand they were trying to cut the red tape and trying to get business booming, and I get it. But at the same time, there has to be a happy medium and a balance. And these white collar criminals, these money launderers, these people that are enabling people like Jeffrey Epstein, they need to be held accountable for the way they steal, from the way they grift and from the way they continue to keep poor people poor. Where are these tax havens? All over the world. Some are independent countries like Panama, the Netherlands and Malta. Others are within countries like the U.S. state of Delaware or our territories like the Cayman Islands. ICIJ investigations have focused on different tax havens, often depending on the origin of and content of the documents. Panama Papers, for example, exposed how Mossack Fonseca, one of the biggest offshore law firms in the world, sold thousands of shell companies in the British Virgin Islands to clients around the globe. Mortise Leaks examined how companies used mortise to avoid taxes, while Paradise Papers revealed the secrets of Bermuda, the island where the law firm and Applebee was founded. So these are all of the leaks that have come out. The Panama Papers, the Paradise Papers and they have built this picture for us that we have had in front of us leading up to the FinCEN files. And then when the FinCEN files were dropped, obviously it added more context, more meat to the bone as I like to say. And it made the picture come in just that much clearer. Do we have the full picture yet? No, we do not. But it sure is starting to take shape. Some tax havens like New and Vanitu have cleaned up their act under international pressure, while others like Dubai are emerging as new hotspots of illicit wealth. That doesn't shock me considering all of the wealth that you will find in Dubai, all of the rich people looking to skate on taxes doesn't shock me
Co-host/Guest Analyst
for one single minute. To hear or think that Dubai would be one of these tax havens certainly
Bobby Capucci
falls right into line with how we see things moving around the world, right? It seems like some of the most industrialized countries, including the United States of America are leading the way for being tax havens. So we know we have a lot of jawing from American, American politicians as of late about bringing these people to heel. But we'll see, right? Considering that there hasn't been much of a change, as you know at the top, how can we think that there's going to be change as far as it goes when it comes to these tax havens. So I'll need to be convinced of that. Their words are fine and all, fine and all, but I'm going to need some action from the US politicians that say their staunch about making sure that these people that are engaging in these financial crimes are no longer able to manipulate the financial system the way they have been able to for all of these years. Why would a country or state decide to become a tax haven?
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Bobby Capucci
Money Tax havens make significant income from fees paid by people and companies who create and use shell companies. Tax havens also create work for lawyers, accountants and secretaries. Mauritius, for example, has said 5,000 people would lose jobs if the country stopped being a tax haven. So you see what they do there, right? They intertwine it with the actual economy, the real economy, and then they bring in secretaries and the sort. And when things start going south, they'll point to those folks and be like, well, all of these people are going to lose their jobs if we can't make this, if this can't be a tax haven anymore. Meanwhile, those jobs are basically being used to help these people launder money. So I don't really know why any country or district would play ball with these people. I get it, the money is a draw. But now, especially as people are starting to focus more on this and more journalists are beginning to write about this problem and how big it is. I think that you these districts or little islands or republics or whatever would be crazy to get into bed with as a shell company with some of these corporations. What is a shell company? A shell company is a legal entity created in a tax haven. Shell companies typically exist only on paper, with no full time employees and no office. A single office building in The Cayman Islands for example, is home to 19,000 shell companies. Rules differ, but the actual owners of many shells are not disclosed in incorporation documents. Some use the term shell company and offshore company interchangeably. Now you see why we talk about this when it comes to Epstein, considering all of the shell companies he had in the Virgin Islands. Look, it was not a coincidence he was located down there, right. He was getting a great deal on a lot of these LLC offshore shell companies that he had down there. He was getting a sweetheart deal on the taxes, and he knew that people were going to look the other way for his behavior because of these entities that he had there. He was pumping money into the hands of the bureaucracy. So Jeffrey Epstein and his enterprise was in the Virgin Islands for many reasons, and they were on the island for many reasons. One of those reasons, in my opinion, is because of how prevalent the money laundering was and the LLCs and shell companies and that whole entire situation for him to stay off the grid with his shadow money down in the Virgin Islands. That played a huge part in it. Why are they called shell companies? Because, like an empty shell, there's nothing inside. A shell company exists legally only on paper. And like we talked about A second ago, 19,000 shell companies in one building in the Cayman Islands. Yeah. Cause that's possible, right? What are shell companies used for? Legal and illegal purposes. Shell companies can hold money, luxury homes, intellectual property, businesses, and other assets. They also play a vital role in facilitating the flow of illicit money around the globe. And we have established that with our conversations here. I mean, let's be real. The art world especially is rife with money laundering and dark money being moved around, and the, the. The art being used as the vehicle for that to occur. You know, these people think they're slick, right? And for years, this has been a great market for them to make their moves and to play their games. But once again, people are catching on and people are starting to pay attention. And the silence that once surrounded them by the people that they abused is no longer guaranteed. People are seeing that they're not alone, and they're not going to just be laughed at and told that they're liars. And they're coming forward to put these scuzz bags on blast. And you're going to see it happen more and more as this case gets deeper. Who uses tax havens and why? Rich but otherwise average folk, including dentists and at least one Alabama greengrocer, use shell companies for reasons that may include making it harder for potential creditors, including former spouses displeased business partners or tax inspectors to identify and recoup monies allegedly owed. Investments made through tax shelters can be especially lucrative owing to the significant tax savings offshore companies may enjoy. And again, there are a lot of people that are utilizing these shell companies, right? People that don't want to pay their fair share of taxes, want to stash that money, or like they're saying here, they're trying to hide some dough from their wives or from their business partners or whatever it is. And while that's all fine and well, it has to be regulated. I get it. You don't want your estranged ex wife or your estranged ex husband to have their portion of that 85 grand that you just made in Las Vegas hitting the tables or betting on sports and you want to go park it offshore. I get it, bro. I understand. But unfortunately, these dirtbags like Epstein and all of his scumbag friends have ruined it for everybody. So now the whole thing needs to be regulated in. Bob geldorf, Madonna and U.S. commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross are among the bold faced names that ICIJ is linked to shell companies. Some, like Queen Elizabeth II say they don't even know they have invested offshore. No, of course not. They have no idea. No idea. We don't know that we invested offshore. We don't know that Prince Andrew's a sick, disgusting bastard. We don't know any of it. That's what they would have you believe. But everybody knows that old money, like the money of the Windsors is buried offshore, probably in, in safes, right in, in treasure chests like the pirates used to have. And wouldn't shock me, these people come from very old money folks and they've been very much manipulating the system for a very long time. Imagine what a full audit of the Royal House of, of Windsor would turn up. Politicians like Iceland's former Prime Minister Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson and Nigeria's former Senate President Bukola Soraki have concealed investments or luxury homes with the help of shell companies. So have their children. Notables include the son and daughter of former Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Isabel dos Santos, the billionaire daughter of former Angolan strongman President Jose Eduardo Das Santos. Oh, I'm sure that none of that money that his their kids stashed offshore was pilfered from the people or made off of their hard work and stolen from them. I'm sure none of that occurred. You notice none of these people go to prison folks, ever. None of these people ever have to pay any kind of penalty for their behaviors. For Their stealing from their outright larceny of the few of of our future. Drug lords and ladies, bank robbers and arms traffickers, Mafia kingpins and queens and bribe takers and makers also use shell companies to obscure their identities and conceal money assets and illicit activities. Let's add human traffickers to that as well, because we know that Jeffrey Epstein's lifeblood and the money he used in his dark, sadistic world was pumped through the heart of the financial system. Is owning or using a shell company illegal? The short answer is no. The longer answer is that it depends on how it is used and where the shell company is created or incorporated. Hiding stolen assets abroad is clearly illegal. But buying a luxury yacht with a shell company may not be. Hello, Microsoft's Paul Allen and Saudi Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saad. Lawyers and accountants are very good at proposing technically legal ways to spend or stash cash offshore. I wonder how much indyke was involved in that shit with Epstein, huh? I wonder how much money was parked offshore that no one knows about. Oh, I'm guessing a lot. In my opinion, Jeffrey Epstein definitely has money in the billions. Only 600 and some change is on the books, but there's definitely more. Folks, how do companies benefit from tax havens? Businesses, especially those that transact across borders, can enjoy massive tax savings by routing payments, profits or investments through subsidiaries in offshore financial centers. And that's a genius move, right? They pay taxes through the subsid, then offshore, and they avoid getting whacked by the tax. The tax man in, you know, whatever country they're trying to avoid, the tax man in a big pharmaceutical company, for example, might set up a new idea, a new entity in Bermuda or the Netherlands and sell that entity a patent for a profitable drug. The parent company might then pay a big licensing fee to the offshore company, which in turn would allow it to record lower profits at home and pay a lower tax bill. Drug companies have avoided billions of dollars in taxes this way, according to Oxfam, while at the same time charging you a bazillion dollars for your medicine, charging you a bazillion dollars to make sure that you don't get sick, and all at the same time producing like oxycontin by the. By the load, causing all sorts of misery and death. But at the same time, screw you on the other side, by the way, they're not gonna pay any taxes on that either. They're gonna park that offshore and you can go kick gro. What are you gonna do about it? They own your local politician. Well, are you gonna Keep sending your local politicians back to D.C. folks. Or are we going to do a better job and ditch the incumbents? Each year companies avoid paying more than 500 billion in taxes using methods like these. Some pay little or no taxes at all in their home countries. Notable corporate tax avoiders include Apple, Johnson and Johnson and Skype. Well it doesn't shock me with Johnson and Johnson they could they can't run a football team to save their lives. Their family member had a property that they gave half of the Jeffrey Epstein and had their money managed by Jeffrey Epstein and they can't even make powder that doesn't give you cancer. So why anyone would have any kind of confidence in Johnson and Johnson paying their fair share is beyond me. Apple, I mean come on, they're using slave labor labor over in China. I mean give me a break already with Apple and Skype. I don't know much about their company but pretty sure that they're scummy as well. All of these so called masters of the universe from Silicon Valley and their subs are all scary as hell folks and they really truly think that they can control our lives and center what we hear and what we don't hear and it's pretty terrifying. Some straight up 1984 Orwellian type shit.
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Bobby Capucci
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Bobby Capucci
Companies often say shell companies encourage foreign investment and get deals done that wouldn't otherwise well then the deal doesn't get done. You find another deal, then I'm pretty tired of this too big to fail mentality. Now, it would be one thing if these corporations took care of us, right? It would be one thing if these corporations took care of their employees and gave a. But they don't you think they give a damn? They really do not. And I know that for a fact because, well, I worked for a corporation, two, in fact, for a very long time. And then I've seen the way that they've treated people here in Las Vegas during this pandemic. You know how many people that were furloughed from their jobs, that had good union jobs, working as cocktail waitresses or bartenders, et cetera, et cetera, just lost their. Their insurance on October 31st in the middle of a pandemic. And then these corporations have the audacity to try and get money from a bailout. It is a bunch of bullshit. And these corporations are a joke. So if you can't get the deal done otherwise, with all of your fancy schmancy people from Harvard and the rest of the cesspools, then maybe the deal shouldn't get done and maybe somebody else should step into your place and make a better deal. They also incorporate offshore, many say, to avoid paying taxes twice on the same pot of money. Experts say that such defenses are either overblown or mythical. It's true. They are overblown or mythical. These people are putting their money offshore for the simple reason of making sure that they don't pay their fair share while you have to pay every nickel and dime. These rich, disgusting sons of bitches are finagling and loopholing the same way Ghislaine Maxwell and Jeffrey Epstein were loopholing in their trials and in their criminal cases. It shouldn't shock you, though, because we know from our year together here that the whole entire game is rigged. And the playbook, when it comes to the way they manipulate things in a court case or when they're manipulating things financially, is certainly carried out in the same manner. If you'd like to contact me, you can do that@bobby capuchirotonmail.com that's B O B B Y C A P U c c I protonmail.com youm can also find me on Twitter at Bobby Capucci. All of the links that go with this episode can be found in the description box to everybody who has donated.
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Host: Bobby Capucci
Date: May 27, 2026
This episode dives deep into how Jeffrey Epstein—and similar figures—manipulated global financial systems through the use of tax havens, shell companies, and largely unregulated shadow markets. Host Bobby Capucci explores recent news regarding the British Virgin Islands (BVI) corruption scandal and connects it to broader patterns of offshore finance, explaining how these mechanisms aided Epstein’s criminal enterprise and protected the global “elite” from legal and financial accountability. Throughout, Bobby delivers an unfiltered, passionate critique of systemic corruption, wealth disparity, and the financial sector’s role in enabling criminality.
"Everything connects to each other. And once one domino begins to fall around the world, you start to see the rest of it happen."
—Bobby Capucci (03:49)
"He's the bag boy. Which one of these rat bag politicians is really the one pulling the strings? Who's the puppeteer? Because obviously this dude is the puppet."
—Co-host (11:07)
"More than half the shell companies exposed in the Panama Papers investigation were registered in the BVI… Yikes. 25%, folks. So the struggle is real, the problem is real."
—Co-host (16:42)
"They've gotten away with this shit for way too long, folks. And it's time that the script is flipped."
—Bobby Capucci (09:47)
"There are so many people that were connected to him [Epstein] financially, so many bigwigs and financial big shots that were involved…if the proper amount of trees are shaken and the proper amount of doors are kicked in, it's going to be very apparent what was going on here."
—Bobby Capucci (22:01)
"The rest of us cover the difference. Or more commonly, can't, leaving Treasuries bereft of monies needed to build roads, schools, and tackle existential threats like climate change and global pandemics."
—Bobby Capucci (27:51)
Bobby, on hypocrisy and the system:
"Politicians worldwide are corrupt. That's why they lobbied to keep it off such a list. And for the EU's part…pretty childish right there."
(18:34)
On wealth inequality and missed priorities:
"The most vulnerable amongst us are now staring at serious trouble…Meanwhile, while all of that was happening, folks, while you were asleep, these people were transferring our wealth to their bank accounts."
(27:51–31:25)
On enforcement and accountability:
"None of these people go to prison folks, ever. None of these people ever have to pay any kind of penalty for their behaviors, for their stealing, from their outright larceny of our future."
(45:48)
On extrapolating to Epstein:
"We have also talked a lot about the FinCEN files. We talk about how these offshore LLCs and these shell companies are basically the lifeblood for people like Epstein and others who are involved in the underbelly of the world."
(22:01)
Bobby Capucci dissects the intersection of shadow finance, offshore tax evasion, and global corruption—making a strong case that these mechanisms were vital to the criminal power held by Epstein and his network. He calls for sweeping reforms and genuine accountability, bringing passionate energy and plenty of sharp critique to the episode. If you want to understand the shadowy world that allowed Epstein to operate unchecked for so long—and what needs to change—this dense, illuminating episode is essential listening.
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