Panama Papers series named Investigation of the Year

The Panama Papers series on global financial networks have been named Investigation of the Year at the Data Journalism Awards 2016.

Millions of documents were sourced, trawled and published as a result of the investigation, shining a light on how heads of state, criminals and celebrities utilised secret hideaways in tax havens for substantial amounts of money.

The intensive project was undertaken by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) of which The Irish Times was a participant.

Irish Times journalists Colm Keena and John McManus worked on the Irish connections contained in the papers.

A massive leak of documents, the papers exposed the offshore holdings of 12 current and former world leaders, notably highlighting the financial interests of British prime minister David Cameron and of associates of Russian president Vladimir Putin.

Details of the hidden financial dealings of 128 more politicians and public officials around the world were exposed.

The ICIJ received the award on Thursday at a ceremony in Vienna, Austria.