Smoke Screen

Some people do extraordinary things to get rich but few come close to Big Spender. A criminal mastermind, he grew up poor in Hong Kong and hungry for more. So, naturally, he decided to pull off the biggest crimes of their kind the world has ever seen.

This is Bad Money — a new narrative series from Kindling Media and Vespucci about power, wealth and wrongdoing.

Search Bad Money and follow the feed to be the first to know. Episode one is out now.

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The Bureau of Investigative Journalism and its reporting partners received hundreds of thousands of documents about British American Tobacco and its hired spies – and what they got up to in South Africa and beyond. It's a tale of spies, lies, tobacco and bribes, but how do you go from thousands of leaked documents to a story people would want to listen to? The team that reported out the story and turned it into an acclaimed eight-part podcast talk to BizNews and reveal how they did it.The resulting podcast "Smoke Screen" is A Novel Production for The Bureau of Investigative Journalism and Auddy. Panelists include:

Victoria Hollingsworth, reporter and podcast host.

Tom Wright, podcast producer

Chrissie Giles, global health editor at TBIJ

Alec Hogg, founder of BizNews

Chair: James Ball, global editor at TBIJ

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We conclude our investigation by speaking to the people who have been affected by the story.

Hearing the opinions of experts in the field, we understand why this story was so important to share.

BAT denies any wrongdoing and the UK’s Serious Fraud Office concluded there was insufficient evidence for any prosecutions.

But could the British authorities have done more to try to ensure such things couldn’t happen?

A Novel Production for The Bureau of Investigative Journalism and Auddy.

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The investigation continues to explore the FSS and finds evidence that the bribes may have extended beyond South Africa’s borders.

As things began to spiral out of control the government became involved and key players took the blame.

A Novel Production for The Bureau of Investigative Journalism and Auddy.

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We come back to the investigation to understand why there is such much to uncover.

The link to the local private security firm seems to hold the key.

Their surveillance techniques led to more allegations and people being held accountable.

A Novel Production for The Bureau of Investigative Journalism and Auddy.

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The search for Belinda begins.

BAT said their actions were simply to combat the illicit trade in tobacco products.

But just how big was this operation?

A Novel Production for The Bureau of Investigative Journalism and Auddy.

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Whose side were you on?

We continue our investigation into the murky world of the tobacco industry in South Africa.

As it became harder to know who to trust, people’s careers have paid the price.

A Novel Production for The Bureau of Investigative Journalism and Auddy.

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We met Johann Van Loggerenberg in episode 2, but how did a tax official know so much?

Exploring his relationship with Belinda uncovers how sensitive information could have got into the wrong hands.

A Novel Production for The Bureau of Investigative Journalism and Auddy.

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How and why did Belinda end up blowing the whistle on BAT? Only she really knows the answer.

Is she really who she seems? And how was she involved with the state intelligence agency?

As the investigation unfolds, we see her vulnerability, hear her story and meet the different parties involved.

A Novel Production for The Bureau of Investigative Journalism and Auddy.

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They say a leopard doesn’t change its spots. Our investigation starts in 2013, and we meet an attorney called Belinda Walter who is recruited by BAT in London to spy on the tobacco smugglers within South Africa. How is it that an upstanding citizen can get wrapped up in this world? Can a young journalist uncover one of the biggest scandals the South African tobacco industry has seen in decades?

Over the next 8 weeks, we will be exploring allegations that British American Tobacco used a network of spies to help damage its rivals. One of these, Belinda Walter, nearly brought the whole operation crashing down.

BAT denies any wrong doing.

A Novel production for the Bureau of Investigative Journalism and Auddy.

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