File on 4 Investigates

Amongst the millions of documents released in the ‘Pandora Papers’ leak of offshore financial information are a number of documents that one family business would rather have remained hidden.

Together with The Guardian newspaper, File on 4 follows the trail of millions of pounds tainted by bribery and corruption. Piecing together key documents from the leak reveals how earnings from Unaoil – a company involved in the ‘world’s biggest bribery scandal’ - were invested into UK property on high streets as far apart as London and Aberdeen, Reading and the North East.

Why does the UK remain a go-to destination for some of the world’s most tainted money? And why does it take a leak for the truth to be revealed about who’s really invested in some of the country’s prime property?

The Pandora Papers is an investigation led by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. The documents have been shared with the Guardian, the BBC and other media partners around the world.

Further reporting on other stories arising from the Pandora Papers leak are available online: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-58780561

Reporter: Felicity Hannah

During the pandemic, it’s been one of the most dangerous occupations in the land, with a death rate similar to that of frontline nurses. Sixty London bus drivers have died of Covid-19, and yet the authorities still have little explanation as to why the disease spread among them in such deadly fashion.

Reporter: Paul Kenyon

Mental health profiteers: The dark world of online anxiety ‘cures’.

File on 4 reveals the inside story of Ramon Abbas, one of a new breed of prolific global cyber fraudsters. As Abbas awaits sentencing in the US for money-laundering, File on 4 asks if enough is being done to protect us from online criminals operating across international borders.

Snared by the FBI in 2020, Abbas is better known as Instagram influencer Hushpuppi, who flaunted a life of designer clothes, private jets and penthouse apartments to millions of followers. Little did they know that his lavish lifestyle was funded through a complex web of cyber-heists. He even had a hand in an audacious attempt to steal £100 million from a Premier League Football Club.

In addition, we expose the inner workings of a clandestine operation that earned him a reputation as the world’s most high-profile money-launderer.

Reporters: Paul Connolly and Princess Abumere

When three black England footballers missed penalties in the Euro 2020 football final they were bombarded with online racist abuse. The Football Association condemned the ‘offensive and racist’ messages saying it was ‘appalled’ and would do everything it could to assist Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka. File on 4 examines what many describe as institutional racism within the game and amongst supporters and asks what, if anything, is being done to stop it from happening? With access to new analysis charting the peaks and flows of online abuse, the programme explores who is really behind some of the most egregious comments.

Reporter: Athar Ahmad

The extraordinary story of a UK schools group which took on a cyber ransomware gang.

The Harris Federation seems an unlikely target for ransomware criminals but it found itself at the centre of a cyber attack by anonymous hackers. With its servers down and a ransom demand of nearly £3 million, school leaders had to decide quickly whether to pay or suffer the consequences. File on 4 has unique access to the extraordinary negotiations that took place behind the scenes, involving an Israeli security company and Russian hackers.

More British institutions are being hit by ransomware gangs than ever before, from multi-national corporations to health care trusts and even schools.

The attackers hack into an organisation's computer system, encrypt the data and demand a ransom to get it back. Increasingly, they also threaten to publish sensitive information if no payment is made. It's known as double extortion.

The former head of the National Cyber Security Centre tells File on 4 that the government needs to intervene as a matter of urgency, and make it illegal to pay ransomware gangs.

Presenter: Paul Kenyon

Allegations of bullying and sexual harassment against the actor and film maker Noel Clarke have led to an industry-wide examination of the culture within the film and television business. Industry insiders describe an environment where those in power can be bullying and demanding, where sexual harassment is commonplace and where victims are afraid to speak up because they fear losing work. File on 4 has heard from hundreds of people who work in the industry who paint a disturbing picture of the culture where intimidation, bullying and sexual misconduct is often overlooked. The programme asks if the industry is equipped to tackle this bad behaviour, whether new regulation is needed and whether it is serious about cleaning up its act.

Reporter: Livvy Haydock

A death sentence? The inmates dying after poor prison healthcare.

Reporter: Jane Deith

The COVID-19 pandemic led to an urgent need for a range of new government contracts which resulted in billions of pounds of public money being spent under emergency powers which suspended usual procurement rules around competition.

This new regime created an unprecedented situation where commercial firms were able to secure large contracts quickly. But did this mean that money was spent without due diligence, regard for transparency - and potentially value for the taxpayer?

In a joint investigation with The Guardian and the non-profit investigative organisation Source Material, File on 4 investigates whether some firms were given preferential treatment when lucrative contracts were being awarded.

Reporter: Paul Connolly

Since reporting on a story about police abuses earlier this year reporter Anna Adams has been inundated with calls and messages from women all telling her the same thing; they were a victim at the hands of a police officer. For File on 4 Anna investigates the failures of police forces to properly manage and investigate accused officers within their own ranks. Many of the women she speaks to are police officers themselves

Reporter: Anna Adams