Raoul Weil had been on the run since January 2009, when he was first labelled a fugitive by the US federal government, having failed to attend a Florida federal court where we was due to face charges of conspiring to help 20,000 Americans hide $20bn in assets from the IRS from 2002 to 2007.
The 54 year-old was arrested at a hotel in Bologna where he is reported to have checked in under his own name.
A spokesman for the Bolgona police told AFP: “He was arrested at the hotel and he is now being held in prison. He did not explain why he was in Italy.”
Weil has always denied the charges and in 2009 his attorney Aaron Marcu told Bloomberg: “Mr Weil denies any suggestion that he was aware of, engaged in or tolerated any illegal conduct in the operation of UBS’s US-cross-border business.
“Mr Weil is a highly-respected banking executive in Switzerland with an unblemished record of integrity.”
If extradited to the US and convicted of the tax-evasion charges, Weil could spend up to five years in prison and face $250,000 in fines.
Yesterday, International Adviser reported that Bank Frey had become the second Swiss bank to close in the wake of efforts by the US government to crack down on tax evasion by its citizens.
The first to close was Weglin & Co., formerly Switzerland’s oldest private bank, which closed its doors in January after paying a $74m fine to the US.
