Investigations into companies alleged to own cancelled Club weeks at Los Claveles
Since 2015 Onagrup has, without recourse to, or authorisation from, the Club Committee, ‘transferred’ large numbers of cancelled Club weeks to a small number of previously unknown and unheard-of companies located in different parts of the world, including tax havens. These weeks, according to the Constitution, belong to the Club and they are under the custodianship of the Club Committee. Onagrup has, subsequently, sought to use the block votes associated with these weeks to undermine the Club’s democratic process and ‘drive’ the resolutions at AGMs/SGM’s in its favour – to the detriment of normal Club members.
BUT…..
- Just “who” are these companies with whom Onagrup is collaborating?
- And “what secrets” do these organisations have – “secrets” that Onagrup and its supporters (some quite close to home) might prefer to keep hidden from you?
- What are the possible implications for Club Los Claveles – more questions than answers -?
In short, what ‘forces’ are Onagrup bringing into the ‘orbit’ of Los Claveles and Club Owners in its determination to gain control of OUR resort??
This report takes a closer look at two companies with whom Onagrup has ‘allied’ itself. The information has been compiled by an independent Club owner and has drawn information from a range of internet resources – both official and unofficial. Be prepared. It is alarming!
Onagrup’s ‘Associates’ Uncovered ………..
International Group Hotels & Resorts LLP
In September 2016 Onagrup transferred 211 weeks to International Group Hotels and Resorts LLP. Research into this company has revealed some particularly alarming information:
| International Group Hotels & Resorts LLP (IG H&R) – Timeline | ||
| Date | Country | Comment |
| April 2014 | UK | Company is formed in the UK as a Limited Liability Partnership |
| January 2015 | Spain | Spanish subsidiary is registered – listed as ‘Non-Resident Entity’ with no Directors identified |
| March 2016 | UK & Spain | 115th March Companies House initiates compulsory strike-off proceedings on the UK company (which is discontinued in May 2016).On the 16th March the Spanish company Arpa Ingenieria y Construcion SL is formed, based at the same address as the Spanish arm of International Group Hotels and Resorts LLP. |
| September 2016 | UK | Onagrup transfers 211 weeks to International Group Hotels and Resorts LLP |
| September 2017 | UK | 1Companies House enforces the compulsory strike-off notice on the UK company – by removing the company from its register. |
| April 2018 | UK | Despite being ‘struck-off’, Onagrup seeks to use the votes it lodged with IG H&R at the 2018 Club AGM. |
| 2019 – 2020 | UK | 2 The Russian Mafia Connection – International Group Hotels & Resorts 2016 accounts were signed off by S Valuta on behalf of Porampto Inc. in January 2017. The two ‘partners’ of IG H&R (Belize companies, Poramto Inc. LLP and Admiral Group Corporation) are named in a Dutch investigative journalist’s report into money laundering through UK’s Scottish Limited Partnerships (SLP’s). https://www.bellingcat.com/app/uploads/2019/09/Smash-and-Grab-The Uks-Money-Laundering-Machine.pdfOne other named company, LAS International, is mentioned as classing Poramto as its general partner and using Sergiu Valuta to control 322 SLP’s.The journalists’ website www.360storybank.com, alleges Sergiu Valuta is used by the mafia to systematically draft, file and sign financial statements for ‘cover firms’ (Sergiu Valuta is Romanian and his name translates as ‘Value for Money’).BBC news article in September 2020 reports that numerous UK companies are laundering money using ‘fake directors’, referring to a 2018 news story where one director’s name actually means ‘The Hen Thief’. |
| 2021 | Spain | The weeks that were allegedly bought by International Group Hotels & Resorts LLP have apparently been transferred to another Spanish company registered at the same address as IG H&R’s Spanish operation, Arpa Ingenieria y Construcion SL, as they were on a list produced by Onagrup in April 2021. |
| Notes:1 “Compulsory strike off” is one of the ways in which a limited company is formally closed and removed (struck off) the Companies Register. This type of company dissolution process is used by Companies House under Section 1000 of the Companies Act 2006 to forcibly strike off a company on the grounds that it is no longer trading or in operation – usually initiated due to a failure, by the company, to comply with some form of protocol, such as:The company has failed to file annual accounts or statementsThe company has no appointed directorsPost sent by Companies House to the company’s registered address is returned undelivered | ||
| 2 The Russian Mafia Connection. It is widely reported that following the fall of the Berlin wall, the Russian mafia moved to Spain in the early 90’s, targeting Catalonia with the aim to divide and control, which it is also reported as being the major route into Europe for drug trafficking and money laundering from Africa and Colombia. The aim was to take over restaurants and tourist establishments and divide Catalonia up into sections controlled by the various gangs to avoid a gang war. Many of the leaders were said to reside in Andorra.Two areas Onagrup have expanded into are Colombia and Africa.Still today, Europol is fighting Russian mafia involvement in Europe and Spain in particular where it was reported in December 2020 that Europol had defeated a network linked to the mafia that had infiltrated Spanish institutions.The general public cannot report suspicious activity to Europol, only recognised law enforcement agencies can do that. The UK has the National Crime Agency to whom the general public can report suspicious activities.Note: All web page screen images and links detailing the connections of IG H&R to the mafia have been collected together in one document by our researcher to allay any doubts about the validity of the claims. |
Intergroup SLU
Intergroup SLU (Andorra) is listed by Onagrup as having 157 Club Los Claveles weeks. These are cancelled Club weeks that were transferred by Onagrup without the authority of the Club Committee.
| Intergroup SLU (Andorra) – Timeline | ||
| Date | Country | Comment |
| April 2021 | UK | 1Creditreform International is engaged to investigate the credentials of Intergroup SLU in Andorra |
| July 2021 | UK | Creditreform, concludes its investigations and reports that in its view Intergroup SLU does not exist in AndorraIt could not find any trace of Intergroup SLU. No directors’ records and no accounts have been submitted. There is no record of judicial cases involving them and no media representation. Also, the address ‘Global Great Hotels’ given on their LinkedIn page does not exist.Creditreform also called the telephone number of Global Great Hotels which was answered as Global Great Hotels, but the person refused to give any information on the company. The telephone number comes up a Global Great Hotels Cala D’Or which is an Onagrup resort. |
| General Observations:This confirms our thoughts that Intergroup (SLUE) is just another brand name, ie not officially registered as a company entity, of Juan Carlos Barrau Ribera (Onagrup’s founder).We have found that there are numerous companies in Spain which include the word INTERGROUP in their name, including a hotel company, which would follow Snr Barrau’s tendency to use names similar to reputable companies, like Gruphotel.Global Great Hotels has a UK registered address for its website domain registration. (It’s a maisonette on Cockfosters Road, Barnet ). Also registered at the same address for its .co.uk web domain is an investment website that promotes Global Great Hotels as an ‘Investment opportunity’ – a scheme which has all the hallmarks of an otherwise illegal ‘pyramid marketing scheme’! | ||
| Notes:1. ‘Creditreform International’ is the umbrella association of independent Creditreform country offices from 23 countries. Its objective is to provide international information and debt collection services in order to ensure secure business to its clients all around the world… https://www.creditreform.com/en/home.html |
Los Claveles Club Commentary
Notwithstanding that the sales income and maintenance fees for the ‘transferred’ weeks do not appear in the Los Claveles’ Club’s annual accounts (as illicitly controlled/published by Wimpen/Onagrup), there are HUGE question marks with respect to:
- What kind of ‘agreement(s)’ did Onagrup actually make with IG H&R and Intergroup SLU in ‘transferring’ Club assets —— Focussing on IG H&R’s last filed accounts (30th April 2016), for example, the company only had £31,309 in the bank and negative net assets of -£9,961? To put this into context, the maintenance fees alone for 211 weeks at LC would be a minimum of £44,800 per annum.
- How could/why would Onagrup (who claims to act for the benefit of owners) ‘sell’ these ‘block weeks’ (with their accompanying voting power within the Club’s democratic processes) to unregistered companies and/or companies with few tangible financial assets and ‘associations’ with organised crime syndicates, ie ‘the Russian Mafia’. Notwithstanding the issue relating to IG H&R’s associations the lack of ‘tangible assets should, under normal circumstances, raise major concerns about future ‘bad debts’ and disruption to the resort’s cash flow.
- The ‘probity’ and/or ‘competency’ of Onagrup in holding a ‘management role’ within the Los Claveles operation, given:
- Its ‘preparedness’ to dispose of Club property (along with the associated implications for Club’s democratic process) to dubious and high risk associate companies without, seemingly, appropriate due diligence.
- Its attempts to use, in a Club AGM, proxy votes under the guise of a company which had been compulsorily struck off by the UK company registry, ie Companies House, the previous year.
- “43 Bedford St., London (the former UK registered address of IG H&R) is a widely recognised address, amongst the international media, for registering Ukrainian connected ‘shell companies’. For example, according to a report in April 2016 by the Kyiv Post,”43 Bedford Street” was the official for a large number of Ukrainian connected ‘shell companies’ applying for exemptions from US sanctions over the Russian annexing of Crimea. Two of the companies in the report that applied for exemption were Belize based Viala Trade Ltd and Panama based Gateno Ventures Ltd. Both companies were former partners of IG H&R before Poramto and Admiral replaced them, and were also included in a 2016 news article titled ‘The UK’s Money Laundering Mess (III): LLP’s, Secrecy Jurisdictions, PSC’s, and a Forthcoming Fiasco’.
- Significantly, both IG H&R and Arpa Ingenieria are registered at the same Malaga address – with the latter being created the day after the notice for IG H&R’s compulsory strike off was served. It could be argued that Onagrup, only, belatedly realised the dubious ‘associations’ of IG H&R. It is difficult to conceive, however, that if it was seeking (to fully distance itself from the IG H&R ‘baggage’ form a new/alternate business relationship with the company (Arpa Ingenieria y Construcion SL) which is registered at the same premises in Spain.