Perched on the iconic crescent of Palm Jumeirah in Dubai, the Kempinski Hotel & Residences project exudes opulence and exclusivity. With its sprawling seaside palace-like architecture and ultra-luxury apartments and villas, the 244-unit development has long attracted the world’s wealthiest buyers. Many of these properties reportedly sold for millions, some even before the complex officially opened its doors in 2011.

But beneath the glittering veneer of Dubai’s luxury real estate market lies a troubling nexus of illicit finance and corruption – one that traces back to one of Russia’s most infamous tax fraud scandals, known as the Magnitsky Affair.

The Magnitsky Affair revolves around Sergei Magnitsky, a Russian lawyer who blew the whistle on a massive $230 million tax fraud scheme siphoning state funds through complex offshore networks. Magnitsky’s courageous revelations implicated high-ranking officials in the Russian Interior Ministry as well as businessmen connected to a sprawling criminal operation.

Tragically, instead of being protected, Magnitsky was arrested, imprisoned, and subjected to brutal treatment. He died in a Moscow jail in November 2009, aged just 37, after being denied medical care for pancreatitis. His death ignited international outrage and led to the US Magnitsky Act, a landmark law imposing sanctions on Russian officials deemed responsible for human rights abuses and corruption linked to the case.

At the center of this scandal is Dmitry Klyuev, accused by the US Treasury Department of masterminding the tax fraud scheme and laundering millions through a bank he controlled. Although never formally charged in Russia, Klyuev was sanctioned by the United States in 2014.

According to leaked financial and property transaction records analyzed by investigative journalists from the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) and partners, Klyuev’s offshore company played a significant role in purchasing luxury properties in Dubai, just as........

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