'Souzanna' And A Young Monsieur: A Story Of Ex-Mrs Putin's Inexplicable Riches

Olesya Shmagun, a journalist from the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) who recently won a Pulitzer prize for reporting on the Panama Papers, investigates the life of Putin's ex-wife, who has recently acquired a villa near Biarritz. 

At first glance, it looks like Lyudmila is having it all: after divorcing the Russian president in 2013, she re-married a young and handsome businessman, bought a villa on the Atlantic coast, and is enjoying a quiet life away from the Kremlin. 

But many things in this story don't add up. For instance, her new husband, Artur Ocheretny, only looks glamorous - but has never, in fact, earned much money. The highest income he ever had was about $3000 per month. In Moscow, a salary like that is enough for a comfortable middle class existence: a flat with a mortgage, a car, an occasional night out. Lyudmila's post-divorce income and savings were even less than that. Yet, she managed to acquire a real estate company dealing in expensive office spaces in Central Moscow - all with zero experience in business.

So how did this couple buy a villa worth five million euro and then renovate it, adding a rooftop terrace, panoramic windows and a swimming pool? This is indeed the elephant in the room. The journalist avoids calling it by its name, but the reader is left without any doubt as to what is the real reason for Lyudmila Ocheretnaya's "inexplicable" wealth.This article is not just an example of excellent investigative reporting, it's also an example of how journalism in authoritarian regimes works: the constant toeing of the line.