The New York Times reports today that the United States Justice Department, irked by UBS’ and the Swiss government’s reluctance to comply with its request for the names of American investors, may pursue UBS executives criminally.
UBS came under blistering attack on Wednesday from officials and lawmakers amid a growing outcry over Swiss banking secrecy practices that Washington says allow rampant tax evasion, The New York Times’s Lynnley Browning reported.
In testimony before a Senate subcommittee, a top Justice Department official said the agency might prosecute senior UBS executives as part of its investigation into whether the Swiss bank helped scores of wealthy Americans evade billions of dollars in taxes.
Switzerland has provided $60 billion in aid to UBS — a bulwark of the national economy — to bolster it against huge subprime losses. The Swiss government, which refused to send a representative to the hearing, is resisting a push by the Internal Revenue Service to force UBS to disclose the names of clients behind 52,000 accounts involving illegal tax shelters. Mr. DiCicco said the clients could include corporations as well as individuals.
The Times also reported that Mark Branson, a senior UBS executive, had accused the IRS of creating the problem by demanding disclosure and said that the issue would be better handled through diplomatic negotiations between U.S. and Swiss authorities.
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