Africa News on Feb. 22, 2022

Hello r/Africa,

This is the official account of the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), an investigative journalism group that often reports on corruption throughout the African continent.

I wanted to share our recent story that reveals the role played by Swiss bank Credit Suisse in a deal that reportedly helped Robert Mugabe’s regime fund a wave of violence against the political opposition in 2008.

As many of you know, Mugabe faced a credible electoral defeat in 2008 when he lost the first round of elections. In April, as he was widely projected to lose, his regime received a surprise $100 million, which it then used to terrorize supporters of oppositional leader Morgan Tsvangirai. Over 100 people were killed.

The $100 million came from the sale of platinum mine rights. We reveal that Credit Suisse acted as a banker, a loan officer, and even an investor in this deal.

This story is part of #SuisseSecrets, a collaborative investigation between 163 journalists, including our friends at NewsHawks (Zimbabwe).

OCCRP coordinated the project along with Süddeutsche Zeitung in Germany, so feel free to ask any questions about what we found. Thanks!