The former Minister of the Economy in the Sócrates government, Manuel Pinho, arranged the purchase of an apartment in New York for USD 1.24 million (€1.3 million) through a British Virgin Islands offshore company in June 2010.The money has been traced back to the Grupo Espírito Santo slush fund administered by ES Enterprises.
The property is a luxury apartment at The Platinum, 247 West 46th Street, between Broadway and Eighth Avenue.
The year of purchase, 2010, was the same year in which Manuel Pinho was contracted as a lecturer by the University of Columbia.
Investigators into pay-offs relating to the over-generous EDP compensation structure, or CMEC which was set up to pay amounts in recompense for forward energy deals. These were being scrapped due to EDP’s privatisation and the company has received €1.2 billion in compensation, paid for by Portugal’s electricity customers.
Investigators have asked the Bank of Portugal for information on all the bank accounts belonging to Pinho, the current EDP chief executive, António Mexia, João Manso Neto (EDP administrator), Pedro Rezende (former EDP administrator), Rui Cartaxo (formerly an adviser to Manuel Pinho in the Ministry of Economy and former CEO of REN), João Conceição (formerly an adviser to Pinho and an administrator Jorge Soares Machado (former director general of EDP) and Pedro Furtado (director of REN).
The Public Ministry, in the name of prosecutor José Ranito, asked for the information as part of an investigation into illicit payments made by BES to Mexia and Pinho.
BES supplied bank account information that showed that ES Enterprises transferred €1.3 million to an offshore company controlled by Pinho which then transferred the amount to Blackwade Holding Ltd, which then bought the luxury property for Pinho to occupy.
Pinho is the latest official suspect in the inquiry into the CMEC contracts that started last July. The former Minister is accused of passive corruption and economic participation in business.
Pinho’s lawyer, Ricardo Sá Fernandes, stated that Dr. Manuel Pinho, “has a residence in the United States of America, on behalf of an offshore company. This is a common practice in the US, which is legal in both the US and most countries, including Portugal, as long as taxes are paid, as they have been."
Blackwade was based in the British Virgin Islands until 30 April 2015, when it was removed from the company register for non-payment of a mandatory annual fee.The company’s names was discovered by prosecutor, Carlos Casimiro, after conducting a computer survey in March 2018 on a US site that is equivalent to the Portuguese Land Registry.
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The Platinum is located at 247 West 46th Street and opened in 2008. It was designed by Costas Kondylis.
The 43-story Platinum contains 220 units that range from 600-square-foot studios to 3,500-square-foot duplex penthouses. Small or large, all apartments feature white-oak floors, zoned heating and cooling systems, full-length windows and washers and dryers. Kitchens offer custom cabinetry with etched-glass doors and modern appliances, while master baths have custom vanities, limestone walls and floors and free-standing soaking tubs.
In addition to 24-hour concierge service, residents have access to several shared spaces on the fifth floor: the bar-style Q-Lounge has a pool table and plasma-screen TV; the Spa Lounge offers a personal retreat with a water wall and other services; the Recovery Zone has full-body massage chairs and relaxing audio; and the adjoining health club has a sauna and “experiential” massage showers, as well as an indoor/outdoor yoga studio. The Platinum’s amenities also include a state-of-the-art golf simulator, a vast terrace complete with a stone fireplace for cold evenings and a misting station for hot days.
Conveniently located in the Theatre District, 247 West 46th Street is close to many cultural attractions, excellent shopping and dining and public transportation.
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