A court in Miami has sentenced a wealthy United States citizen involved in the UBS tax investigation to one year of house arrest for filing a false tax return.
This content was published on
1 minute
The 55-year-old accountant is the first American charged in the UBS case. The man pleaded guilty in June. Prosecutors say he hid $6 million (SFr6.13 million) from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
Prosecutors said the defendant, who cannot be named under Swiss law, has cooperated fully and that his case has sent a message worldwide about the risks of offshore tax evasion.
Several other UBS clients also face charges. Under US pressure, the Swiss bank this year agreed to disclose the names of 4,450 additional suspected American tax dodgers.
The protracted legal battle between the US authorities and the bank ended in August with an agreement to open Switzerland’s long tradition of banking secrecy.
swissinfo.ch and agencies
Popular Stories
More
Swiss Abroad
The citizenship obstacle course facing spouses of Swiss Abroad
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
“Aggressive” Italian tax tactics anger Swiss
This content was published on
Switzerland has complained about being singled out for tougher treatment and resents Italian police “spying” on the border. Italy says it has had enough of Switzerland encouraging citizens to dodge taxes. This is not the first time Italy has launched a tax amnesty aimed at repatriating hidden funds back home – in fact it’s the…
This content was published on
An investigation into UBS, that found that the Swiss bank had helped US citizens evade tax, helped fuel a crusade to weed out cheats who were using offshore accounts to hide undeclared assets. The amnesty, that ended on October 15, offered reduced punishments for those who voluntarily declared their guilt. Culprits will pay a fine…
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.