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Ex-UBS Banker Called Accounts ‘Toxic Waste,’ Jury Told

(Corrects spelling of witness’s name throughout.)

Oct. 23 (Bloomberg) — Raoul Weil, who once ran UBS AG’s global wealth-management business, referred to accounts hidden by U.S. clients from the Internal Revenue Service as “toxic waste,” a witness at his tax-conspiracy trial said.

Martin Liechti, a former UBS banker cooperating with prosecutors, told federal jurors in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Weil knew in 2002 that thousands of accounts opened at the Swiss bank by U.S. clients didn’t comply with tax laws.

“Mr. Weil said, ‘The North American business is toxic waste,’” Liechti told jurors today.

Liechti, the former head of banking in the Americas, is one of several ex-UBS bankers to testify against Weil. He offered the most direct evidence that his boss knew the bank was helping clients hide accounts from the IRS.

Weil’s lawyer has blamed the government’s case on “rogue” bankers testifying against him to save themselves.

The case is U.S. v. Weil, 08-cr-60322, U.S. District Court, Southern District of Florida (Fort Lauderdale).

To contact the reporter on this story: David Voreacos in federal court in Newark, New Jersey, at dvoreacos@bloomberg.net To contact the editors responsible for this story: Michael Hytha at mhytha@bloomberg.net David Glovin, Peter Blumberg

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR