Benny Steinmetz: The “King of Diamonds” arrested at Eleftherios Venizelos Airport

The arrest took place on Sunday afternoon when it was discovered that an international arrest warrant had been issued for him.

Benny Steinmetz was arrested on Sunday at Eleftherios Venizelos Airport following a request from Romania. He arrived in Greece shortly after 7pm on Sunday on a private flight from Tel Aviv, and during the check it was confirmed that there was an international arrest warrant for him.

The Israeli billionaire, known as the ‘king of diamonds’, is wanted by the Romanian authorities for, among other things, participation in a criminal organization.

According to reports, Steinmetz was referred to the Court of Appeal on Monday to reassess his case as Greece has refused to execute the arrest warrant following his 2020 conviction by Romanian authorities to five years in prison on corruption charges.

Problems with Romanian justice

The Israeli billionaire’s involvement in bribery cases led to his downfall, with the underground flow of money becoming a matter of judicial scrutiny and lively commentary from prominent media outlets around the world.

Not only is he high on the Forbes list, but also on the Panama Papers list, with the consequences of his shady business dealings being felt on three continents: Europe, Africa and America.

In 2020, the Romanian Supreme Court imposed a five-year prison sentence for property exploitation, leading Interpol to issue a “red warning” against Steinmetz. According to the Romanian justice system, Steinmetz received a five-year prison sentence because he had founded a criminal organization and played an active role in it.

Judicial adventures

Many media outlets around the world have closely examined Steinmetz’s life, focusing on his connections to political figures and the controversies surrounding his business practices. He was accused of bribery in connection with the exploitation of mining rights in Guinea.

On January 22, 2021, a Geneva court convicted him of bribery and sentenced him to five years in prison. The case began to unfold in the early 2000s and became more complicated when it was revealed that Steinmetz’s company had paid millions to the former wife of Guinea’s late president Lansana Conté.

The scandalous scent of his dealings reached Rio de Janeiro, where extensive investigations began a year ago after Steinmetz accused Brazilian manganese production company Vale of hiding information about one of the world’s largest iron ore deposits.

Steinmetz accused Vale executives of deliberately withholding information from shareholders about the actual risks associated with extraction. Both Vale and Steinmetz’s BSG Resources have been embroiled in a protracted legal battle after striking a deal in 2010 to mine Guinea’s vast deposits. BSG Resources was also involved in a corruption case surrounding the mining industry in Sierra Leone, which, among other things, supplies diamonds to Tiffany & Company.

It is notable that this West African country has a GDP per capita of $1,600 and a life expectancy of 58 years.

The Panama papers

A storm erupted when the Israeli tycoon’s name appeared in the Panama Papers due to his deceptive business actions at the law firm Mossack Fonseca. The Panamanian law firm was at the center of the tax evasion scandal exposed in the Panama Papers in 2016.

The secret bank accounts that Steinmetz maintained at an HSBC branch in Geneva for almost twenty years (from 1988 to 2007) also caused unrest in the international legal system, containing as much as $100 million.

The businessman had powerful connections, with close relationships with former Israeli prime ministers Ehud Barak and Ehud Olmert under scrutiny.

A year ago, Steinmetz’s assets were made public: one of the most expensive properties in Israel, a yacht and a private plane for travel between Israel, Switzerland and London.

Forbes List and the war with Soros

The Israeli’s financial status earned him a spot on the Forbes list as financial networks dug into his business dealings. Bloomberg’s 2013 data estimated his wealth at $8 billion, making Steinmetz among the richest Israelis.

However, after six years the numbers changed and in 2019 he appeared on the Forbes list with $1 billion. His submission also mentioned a $10 billion lawsuit he filed against George Soros in 2017, accusing him of a smear campaign against him.

The rise and fall of an empire

Reading about Steinmetz’s tumultuous and risky business journey sparks curiosity about the beginnings of the ambitious Israeli who would become one of the most famous entrepreneurs in the world.

Wealth accompanied him from an early age, growing up with parents who were diamond merchants, with their company called Rubin Steinmetz & Sons. In the 1990s, with the help of his brother Daniel, he founded the Steinmetz Diamonds Group, which developed into a company with rights to buy gemstones from the De Beers group.

However, his downfall was gradual and the transition to an era of persecutions was harsh. In 2013, the British newspaper “Guardian” wrote about a businessman who preferred to keep a low profile and skillfully avoid media attention. He claimed that he did not need publicity and stated that his work speaks for itself.

In an article in the Guardian, he denied all allegations of corruption and claimed he had no connections to politicians. At the same time, he rejected accusations of tax evasion, claimed that he was not a permanent resident of Israel, and stated that he was merely an advisor for BSGR, without a position that allowed him to make decisions.

Eight years later, the clouds over his name grew thicker. In 2021, The Guardian detailed the tycoon’s conviction on bribery and charges of falsification of documents in connection with the Guinean mining case, along with the traces of money laundering throughout Switzerland and the extensions of a case being investigated in Europe, Africa and the US.

Steinmetz chose to label himself as an ‘international Israeli’, and despite possessing Israeli citizenship, he was issued a French passport. His house is located in Arsuf, overlooking the Mediterranean Sea, one of the most expensive properties in Israel.

His real estate extends to Geneva, where he owns a luxury home, while his impressive yacht is anchored in the south of France.

Born in 1956 in Netanya, Israel, he was the fourth child in a family that founded a successful diamond trading company. At the age of 21, after completing his military service, he left Israel for Belgium, specifically Antwerp, where he and his brother founded the Beny Steinmetz Group.

He met his wife Agnès in their teens; they married and had four children. They founded a charity focused on education and youth programs, but the shadow of illegal money overshadowed Steinmetz’s entire journey.