Welcome to Europe Uncovered #8!
This week: Uzbek workers facing abuse in Serbia, Monaco’s inaction on Russian dirty money, and how carbon storage became a €500 billion lobbyists’ dream. Plus: right-wing extremism on Telegram, Orbán’s family profiting from the EU presidency, and a fugitive Ukrainian MP found living in Dubai.
Know a must-read investigation for our next issue? Send it to [email protected]
BIRN | 24.04.2025
This investigation reveals how rising numbers of Uzbek migrant workers in the Balkans, especially Serbia, face exploitation, unpaid wages, and poor living conditions. Many arrive through informal channels or misleading agencies, becoming vulnerable due to restrictive visa rules and limited legal protection. Serbia, often used as a transit country to reach Western Europe, offers limited oversight, allowing exploitative practices to flourish, especially in construction, courier services, and factories.
🇲🇨💸‘A masterclass in bureaucratic obstruction’: how Monaco is allegedly protecting Russian criminals
Follow the Money | 24.04.2025
This investigation by Follow the Money reveals how Monaco may be shielding Russian criminals by failing to act on serious money laundering allegations. Sanctions campaigner Bill Browder accuses Monaco of ignoring his complaints about Russian businessmen involved in a $230 million fraud uncovered by his lawyer, Sergei Magnitsky, who died in Russian custody in 2009. Despite Browder’s efforts to track and freeze assets linked to the fraud, Monaco has allegedly dragged its feet, opening a criminal case only in late 2023 and failing to provide updates since.
🇪🇺💨 Carbon storage: investigation into the €500 billion heist by the most polluting industries
L’Humanité | 22.04.2025
This cross-border investigation by L’Humanité and EU partners, exposes how major polluting industries secured political and financial support to push carbon capture and storage (CCS) as a “green” solution to climate change. Despite serious doubts about its effectiveness, high costs, and technological maturity, CCS has become central to EU decarbonisation plans – potentially costing €520 billion by 2050 – benefiting industrial lobbies more than the climate.
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Vsquare reveals how Hungary’s government, during its 2024 EU presidency, tried to steer visiting EU delegations toward Hotel Dorothea – a luxury hotel owned by Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s son-in-law.
🇺🇦🌴 Fugitive Ukrainian MP hides in Dubai
Skhemy and OCCRP reveal that fugitive Ukrainian MP Serhii Shakhov, wanted for hiding $2.1 million in assets, has been secretly living in a luxury apartment in Dubai while continuing to attend parliament remotely.
🇩🇪💣 Rightwing extremism chats on Telegram
DER SPIEGEL reveals how an international neo-Nazi network known as “Terrorgram” recruits and radicalizes minors via Telegram, glorifies mass violence against migrants and LGBTQ+ members, and connects militant far-right extremists across borders.
That’s all for this week – stay informed, stay critical, and see you next time with more must-read investigations from across Europe. Have feedback or a tip for our next edition? Reach out at nathan.do[email protected].