UK officials have launched a criminal investigation into a prominent backer of the campaign for Britain to leave the European Union. Arron Banks has been accused of siphoning Russian cash into the election effort.
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Britain's National Crime Agency on Thursday said it had launched a criminal investigation into the pro-Brexit millionaire Arron Banks over cash used to promote Britain's exit from the European Union.
The UK Electoral Commission said it suspected that Banks "was not the true source" of money loaned to the Leave campaign, and that he had tried to conceal its real origins.
The commission said it had investigated financial transactions which appeared to come from companies registered in Gibraltar and the Isle of Man. Since 2000, UK laws have effectively forbidden overseas or foreign donations to registered political campaigners.
"Our investigation has unveiled evidence that suggests criminal offenses have been committed which fall beyond the remit of the commission," said the commission's director of political finance, Bob Posner. "This is why we have handed our evidence to the NCA to allow them to investigate and take any appropriate law-enforcement action."
Banks, on tax haven Bermuda when the news emerged, said he welcomed the inquiry and that it would be a chance for him to clear his name.
"I am confident that a full and frank investigation will finally put an end to the ludicrous allegations leveled against me and my colleagues," Banks said in a statement issued by Leave.EU. "I am a UK taxpayer and I have never received any foreign donations."
Meetings at Russian embassy
The Electoral Commission also said another prominent Leave campaigner, Elizabeth Bilney, was being investigated.
The probe into Banks follows the revelation that he held a series of secret meetings with senior Russian embassy officials in London around the time of the referendum. Embassy staff were reported to have presented Banks with a lucrative investment opportunity in a Russian gold company, although the deal never went ahead.
Banks — who is said to have been the single biggest donor for the Leave.EU campaign — has previously faced questions in the UK parliament about the source of his wealth.
Who's who in Brexit?
Britain is leaving the European Union, but who exactly is directing the drama? DW takes a look at the people involved in the messy divorce.
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Britain's embattled skipper: Theresa May
May became prime minister after David Cameron resigned from the post in the wake of the Brexit referendum vote in June 2016. Despite her position, she has struggled to define what kind of Brexit her government wants. Hardliners within her Conservative party want her to push for a clean break. Others want Britain to stay close to the bloc. The EU itself has rejected many of May's Brexit demands.
The leader of the British Labour Party has no formal role in the Brexit talks, but he is influential as the head of the main opposition party. Labour has tried to pressure the Conservative government, which has a thin majority in Parliament, to seek a "softer" Brexit. But Corbyn's own advocacy has been lukewarm. The long-time leftist voted for the UK to leave the European Community (EC) in 1975.
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Britain's boisterous Brexiteer: Boris Johnson
Boris Johnson's turbulent two years as UK foreign secretary came to an abrupt end with his resignation on July 9. The conservative had been a key face for the Leave campaign during the 2016 referendum campaign. Johnson disapproves of the "soft Brexit" sought by PM May, arguing that a complete break from the EU might be preferable. He became the second Cabinet member within 24 hours to quit...
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Britain's cheery ex-delegate: David Davis
David Davis headed Britain's Department for Exiting the EU and was the country's chief negotiator in the talks before he quit on July 8, less than 24 hours before Downing Street announced Boris Johnson's departure. Davis had long opposed Britain's EU membership and was picked for the role for this reason. Davis was involved in several negotiating rounds with his EU counterpart, Michel Barnier.
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Britain's former Brexit secretary: Dominic Raab
Raab replaced Davis in early July 2018. But he only lasted four months, resigning a day after Theresa May presented a draft withdrawal plan to her cabinet. Raab previously worked for a Palestinian negotiator in the Oslo peace process and as an international lawyer in Brussels advising on European Union and World Trade Organization law.
Jeremy Hunt was Britain's Health Secretary until he replaced Boris Johnson as foreign secretary in early July 2018. The 51-year-old supported Britain remaining in the European Union during the 2016 referendum, but said in late 2017 that he had changed his mind in response to the "the arrogance of the EU Commission" during Brexit talks. He has vowed to help get Britain a "great Brexit deal."
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Britain's firebrand: Nigel Farage
Nigel Farage was the leader of the United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) until July 2016. Under his stewardship, the party helped pressure former Prime Minister David Cameron into calling the EU referendum. He was also a prominent activist in the Leave campaign in the lead-up to the vote. Farage still has some influence over Brexit talks due to his popularity with pro-Leave voters.
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Brexit's banker: Arron Banks
Businessman Arron Banks is a friend of Nigel Farage, and donated a significant sum to the former UKIP leader's Leave.EU campaign – making him the group's biggest financial backer. He had several meetings with Russian officials ahead of the referendum, but has denied allegations of collusion with Moscow in the Brexit vote, branding the claims a "political witch hunt."
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Europe's honchos: Jean-Claude Juncker and Donald Tusk
EU Commission President Juncker (left) and EU Council President Tusk (right) share two of the bloc's highest posts. Juncker heads the EU's executive. Tusk represents the governments of the 27 EU countries — the "EU 27." Both help formulate the EU's position in Brexit negotiations. What Tusk says is particularly noteworthy: His EU 27 masters — not the EU commission — must agree to any Brexit deal.
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Europe's steely diplomat: Michel Barnier
The former French foreign minister and European commissioner has become a household name across the EU since his appointment as the bloc's chief Brexit negotiator in October 2016. Despite his prominence, Barnier has limited room to maneuver. He is tasked with following the EU 27's strict guidelines and must regularly report back to them during the negotiations.
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Ireland's uneasy watchman: Leo Varadkar
The Irish PM has been one of the most important EU 27 leaders in Brexit talks. Britain has said it will leave the EU's customs union and single market. That could force the Republic of Ireland, an EU member, to put up customs checks along the border with Northern Ireland, a British province. But Varadkar's government has repeatedly said the return of a "hard" border is unacceptable.
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Europe's power-brokers: the EU 27
The leaders of the EU 27 governments have primarily set the EU's negotiating position. They have agreed to the negotiating guidelines for chief negotiator Barnier and have helped craft the common EU position for Tusk and Juncker to stick to. The individual EU 27 governments can also influence the shape of any Brexit outcome because they must unanimously agree to a final deal.
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The commission said it had reasonable grounds to suspect that Banks was not the real source of loans that were made to a company called Better for the Country Limited, of which Banks was a director.
'Ludicrous allegations'
The commission also said it had passed evidence to the National Crime Agency (NCA), to investigate offenses that went beyond the breaking of electoral law.
When asked to comment on allegations of possible Russian influence on the vote, a spokeswoman for British Prime Minister Theresa May said there was "no evidence to suggest that is the case."
Russia has denied backing the pro-Brexit effort in an effort to weaken and divide the European Union.
In the referendum of June 2016, 51.9 percent of those who voted backed leaving the EU while 48.1 percent voted to remain.
