‘Panama Papers’ trial starts. 27 people charged in the worldwide money laundering case

PANAMA CITY (AP) — Panama has started the trial of 27 people charged in the worldwide “Panama Papers” money laundering case. Those on trial include the owners of the Mossack-Fonseca law firm that was at the heart of the 2016 massive document leak, and other former employees of the firm. The Panama Papers include a collection of 11 million secret financial documents that illustrate how some of the world’s richest people hide their money. The repercussions of the leaks have been far-ranging, prompting the resignation of the prime minister of Iceland and bringing scrutiny to the leaders of Argentina and Ukraine, Chinese politicians and Russian President Vladimir Putin, among others.