Arabian riches in SA?
The Saudi prince’s SA stash
An investigation that began with an obscure Limpopo game farm has uncovered a shadowy international network of proxies, offshore firms and shelf companies concealing the Saudi royal family’s wealth
Forty minutes’ drive north of the agricultural town of Louis Trichardt, through the Soutpansberg mountains and Limpopo bushveld, a small army of workers is extending a double-layered electric fence that stretches as far as the eye can see. Tight-lipped contractors come and go, leaving locals scratching their heads. Stories swirling around the area suggest the 12,000ha game farm beyond is being turned into an exclusive hunting resort — some say for a Saudi royal — on which large private jets will be able to land. One person claims workers use a tunnel to gain access to the complex without being seen. Regardless of what may be wild rumour, one thing is clear: the enterprise, and especially its ownership, is shrouded in secrecy. AmaBhungane’s investigation into this little-known game farm called Ekland — drawing on the leaked Panama and Paradise papers, among other sources — has led to a complex global network of middlemen, proxy directors and offshore companies that’s seemingly geared...
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