Warning: Graphic content, readers’ discretion advised. This story contains a recollection of crime and can be triggering to some readers discretion advised.
Aussie criminals are living like kings in the gangsters’ paradise of Dubai.
It might sound strange, but the crime capital of Australia is currently Dubai. That’s because this glitzy mega city in the Persian Gulf has become home to nearly all of our biggest organised crime bosses. Their thinking in moving offshore is that they’re out of reach of federal and state policing authorities, but they might want to think again
an enormous leak of Dubai property records has revealed not only their residential addresses, but also how the city has become the perfect destination for crooks, and suspected criminals, from all around the world to do their dirty business.
welcome to Dubai….
your’re in the international drug business dubai is a great place to do busineess from
the new crime capital of Australia
public enemy number one sorts of criminals can operate with impunity and keep their businesses going .
it might sound like a strange thing to say but the crime capital of Australia is currently Dubai.
that’s because this glitzy mega city in the persian gulf has become home to nearly all of our biggest organized crime bosses.
they think by moving offshore they’re out of reach of federal authorities but they might be thinking again
an enormous leak of Dubai property records has revealed not only ther home adresses but also how the city has become a prize destination for crooks and suspected criminals from all around the world.
Dubai it seems has been the perfect place to do dirty business
the police in Dubai want the world to think they’re doing a great job.
so much so a few years ago they created this action -packed video showing their SWAT team on the tail of two australia’s biggest alleged drug lords.
the targets were benjamn neil
mathew B john both living in dubai at the time
wanted by our police, watching this dramatig vision of their arrest you ‘d think alleged crooks aren’t welcome in Dubai but as you’re about to see ,that couldn’t be further from the truth.
how Dubai became a safe haven for some of australia’s most dangerous suspected criminals
we take you inside a global investigation expoisng dubai’s luxury real estate maket as a dumping ground for the dirty money of the criminal Elit.
from villas on the water
to apartment in the sky
the bigggest ever leak of dubai property data.
leads us straight to the luxurious compounds of australian crime figures
hwo’ve made the city their home away from home.
public enemy number one sorts of criminals are able to operate with a high degree of impunity in a way that you don’t see anywhere else in the world.
from the air you cansee why palm jera is one of dubai’s most exclusive adresses.
this is where you’ll findsome of the city’s most extravagant properties.
and halfway down the palm lined fonde is the home linked to angelo pandeli
australia’s msot senior hell’s angel our biggest mr B.
at the moment it’s the site of a major renovation but make no mistake,this sprawling beach front villa purchased by his wife for more than 15 million dollar is prime real estate
and in dubai pandeli is living not as a crook but as a king.
he would travel regularly first or business class he’d eat at the best resturants he’d be living a very comfortable life.
if anyone knos just how large angelo pandeli can live it’s tim o onnor , his now a criminal defense lawyer but until recently he spent years directing operations
for the ew south wales crime comission, tracking pandeli as he rose through the ranks to become australia’s most powerful organized criminal
what sort of a man is pandeli
made a lot of money alegedly through drug trafficking and his wealth would be hundreds of millions
for the last few years it’s believed pandeli has been the head of the notorious Aussi cartel, a group of dangerous suspected crime bosses who’ve organized themselves into australia’s most powerful drug trafficking network
each year it earns an estimated $ 1 ,5 billion dollars , allegedely ice and cocaine into australia from one of its headquarters in dubai.
angelo’s biggest asset by far is his connection with the hell’s angels, th angels have representation virtualy everywhere in the world, they have supply routs they have supliers,
they have readymade networks if your’re going to be bringing drugs into australia you need people who can receive it, store it and distributed for you
person like mr pandeli could do business elicit business virtually anywhere in the world
but O connor isn’t suprised he chose the united Arab Emirates as a hub
if your’re in the international drugbusiness,dubai is a great place to do business from first off its geographic location is great , hop’s giving a jump into europe not far to southern asia so it’s about midaway
secondly if you want to be moving in the circles with international drugs supliers it’s a place to go because a lot of european people are already there.
thirdly there is no tax in dubai
dubai is a great place for someone like andeli to move elicit funds from australia safely ,quickly easyily.
just 15 minutes from angelo pandeli’s mansion is the equally impressive sunrise bay tower number one could be known as the melrose place of australian drug trafficking suspects .
because between them a number of units owners here were allegedly responsible for more elicit drugs entering in australia than at any other period in recent history.
apartments on levels 9 ,12, and 21 was previously linked to mark buddle international commander of the commanchero outlaw biky gang.
accused drug smuggler benjamin pitt bought on level 20 .
the wife of his co – accused matthew battah , purchased apartments on level 15 and 23 and thedeeds to an apartment
on level 14. belong to marco coffen another suspected member of the Aussie cartel
a short drive from sunrise bay tower is the villa purchased by coffens associalet muhamed bousaleh also considered a top australian target by the federal police.
but in dubai the baddest of the bad are in good company,it would seem dozens of the world’s worst villains have bought property in this middle eastern metropolis
the names appear in a extensive database of property records obtained by a global coalition of investigative journalists.
led by the organized crime and corruption reporting projects,it features thousands of entries and pinpoints the properties belonging to some of the world’s unscrupulous people a roll call of the crooked criminal and corrupt .
underworld figures aren’t just allowed into dubai, they’re embraced and the flow of their dirty money actually underpins the booming real estate market
with its skyline punctuated by glistening skyscrapes
and man -made beaches lined
with mega mansions dubai has long had one of the world’s
hottest real estate markets
a desert dream for property developers
the last 50 years ha s seen an explosion in highend high luxury living
and according to a mega property data leak an influx of the world’s worst villains including a raft of some of australia suspected drug trafficking kingpins.
dubai has become known as a playground for the organize crime Elite.
in response to this global investigation an official from the united Arab Emirates insists it takes its role in protecting the integrity of the global financial system seriously
the statement also said the UAE works ckosely with international partners to disrupt and deter all forms of illcit finance.
and while it’s true there has been some cooperation with australian authorities with the arrest an extradition of benjamin pitt and mathew battha
many other suspects remain.
certainly some of australia’s most senior suspected criminals maintain interests in dubai, angelo pandeli and muhamed bousaleh
are not only links to luxury property they’re also suspected by australian authorities of continuing to import drugs
john chevis is an ex -australian federal police anti- money laundering specialist .
he says bthat what’s happening in dubai is a symptom of a system failure in australia
for money to have been generated in australia from crime to them be moved out of australia across border into another country is a process of multiple steps and there are possible points
where law enforcement in various part of the world could have done more to stop that happening .
so this revelation that all these australian gangsters are amassing significant wealth in the UAA is actually a failure potentially of australian authorities to stop that flow of money from australia drug money abroad
and yeah there arguably has been occasions where australian authorities could have done more to stop that money leaving.
the dubai property lake highlights a grim truth known to almost every senior law enforcement official in the nation drug trafficking and organize crime is occrurring on an unprecedented scale but it’s not a political priority police are having some big wins but they’re barely denting the drug and dirty money flows that fuel so many corruption economic and health problems.