- EXCLUSIVE: Jan Marsalek, the former chief operating officer of the collapsed German financial services Wirecard, likely fled to Russia, not Belarus or the Philippines, intelligence sources told Insider.
- “Marsalek appears to have close ties to Russian government officials and possibly organized crime that were not obvious before but have become clearer as his previous travels are investigated,” an Italian official told Insider.
- The Russians are not currently cooperating with a request from Europol to find Marsalek.
- Marsalek has entered Russia more than 60 times in the past decade with six Austrian passports and three “diplomatic” passports issued by another unidentified country, sources told Insider.
- Visit the Business Insider home page for more stories.
Jan Marsalek, former COO of collapsed German financial services Wirecard, likely fled to Russia last month when regulators and law enforcement officials tried to question him about a $ 2 billion hole in the books. accounting for the company, according to two European law enforcement officials.
Foreign intelligence sources also tell Insider that they suspect Marsalek escaped “with the clear help of Russian intelligence.”
“What concerns us all, not only law enforcement, but also intelligence and counterintelligence operations, is that Marsalek appears to have close ties to Russian government officials and possibly organized crime who were not previously obvious but have become clearer. His past travels are investigated, “an Italian official told Insider.
Marsalek went missing shortly after being fired by Wirecard on June 18, as the extent of the company’s financial woes became apparent to auditors. After telling his colleagues that he would fly to the Philippines to find the lost money, Marsalek apparently organized fraudulent documents showing his arrival in Manila via an international flight, but local authorities quickly determined that he had not entered the country.
The open source research website Bellingcat, along with German and Russian media partners, determined that an Austrian citizen traveling by the name of Jan Marsalek entered Belarus in the early hours of June 19 via private plane. Belarus, which shares close border and immigration cooperation with Russia, has no history of Marsalek leaving the country.
“One of the databases listed all the planes, commercial and private / chartered, that arrived at Minsk airport in June,” Bellingcat reported. “On June 18, 2020, only a private plane had landed: at 7:10 p.m. local time. This plane, with its identity blocked at the request of the operator, had arrived from Tallinn, the capital of Estonia. Two hours later after landing in Minsk – and, presumably, cleared immigration and customs – the mysterious plane flew into the Belarusian city of Vytebsk. “
Two European law enforcement officials contacted by Insider said the evidence strongly points to Marsalek having fled to Russia through Belarus.
“The latest update that has circulated within Europol says he is believed to have fled to Russia via Belarus in a private plane between June 18-20,” said an Italian law enforcement official specializing in organized crime and financial.
“Wirecard has operations and connections across the European Union, Austrians may have primary jurisdiction, but ongoing investigations will have an effect on cases and possible prosecutions across the EU, so we are concerned and investigating as many are of our colleagues, “said the official, who does not have formal permission to discuss the matter with the media. (Wirecard had several managers who were Austrians).
The Italian source added that Europol’s requests for cooperation from the Russian government to find Marsalek have so far been ignored.
Bellingcat and his associates said they had obtained Marsalek’s immigration record from Russian government files, showing that Marsalek had entered Russia more than 60 times in the past decade with a total of six Austrian passports and three “diplomatic” passports. “issued by another, unidentified country.
Bellingcat’s record also showed that on September 15, 2017, the Russian intelligence service FSB denied permission to a private plane carrying Marsalek for eight hours. This was the last time he entered Russia with his Austrian passports, according to Bellingcat.
The Italian official said the situation was difficult to define, but it seemed similar to a process used to recruit assets by intelligence services.
“We already have strong indications that Wirecard was involved in fraud and there are clear links to actors based in Russia, even beyond [Marsalek’s] disappearance, “said the official.” The boss appeared to be 60 trips in and out of Russia as he liked, doing business for what was probably a fraudulent concern before the FSB stops him, stops him and releases him. “
“Three years later, he disappears in Belarus as the police chase him and appears to be in Russia, with the clear help of Russian intelligence,” said the Italian official, noting that crossing the border between Belarus and Russia without leaving a trace of paperwork requires the help of Russia’s border guards, who report directly to the FSB.
A Dutch police officer investigating Wirecard’s allegations agrees with the broad outlines of the “Marsalek is a Russian asset” theory, and said it was clear that Marsalek had close ties to Russian intelligence before the scandal, but this was not of great concern outside Austria
“Until $ 2 billion disappeared, this would have been a problem for the Austrians,” said the Dutch official, who declined to be identified. “Is one of your companies doing questionable business with the Russians? This was something they were supposed to be above, but since the money is gone, this affects several EU countries, so now everyone we’re asking questions. “
The Dutch official confirmed several allegations about Marsalek that have appeared in the German media in recent weeks, in particular that he made a trip in 2017 to the Syrian desert city of Palmyra with Russian troops, and that he has been credibly accused of passing Austrian. Secrets obtained from the Interior Ministry to the Austrian-Russian Friendship Society, which the Dutch official said is a front for Russian intelligence.
“If an organization has” Russia “and” Amistad “in its title, you can bet that it is an intelligence operation,” the official said. “I think we are just starting here on the extent of Wirecard’s Russian infiltration, and I honestly don’t think any of this ends up looking good for Austrian politics.”
