First German trial over Panama Papers opens in Cologne

The first trial in Germany linked to the 2016 publication of the Panama Papers began in Cologne on Wednesday.

The defendant is a 56-year-old Swiss man who is alleged to have helped many people in the Cologne area to evade taxes.

According to the indictment, the case involves €13 million ($15 million), with the offences having been committed between 2002 and 2019.

Seven days of hearings have been scheduled for the trial at the Cologne Regional Court.

The charges are in connection with the data leak of documents about shell companies in Panama that was revealed by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) in 2016.

Almost 400 reporters from more than 80 countries participated in the research, which revealed information on 140 politicians and their confidants among others.

The revelations led to the resignation of Iceland's prime minister, while Pakistan's prime minister was also removed from office.

The ICIJ received the Pulitzer Prize, the highest award in US journalism, for the Panama Papers leak in 2017.

The revelations triggered tax investigations in many countries and subsequently led to millions in additional tax revenue in Germany.

In the first court case to be held over the leak in Germany, the defendant, who resides in Switzerland, is accused of forming criminal organizations and aiding and abetting tax evasion in two cases.

Along with other individuals who are being prosecuted separately, he is alleged to have been a member of a group of companies that, in return for payment, arranged for private individuals worldwide to set up offshore companies based in Panama or other countries known as tax havens.