Swiss Bank Mirabaud & Cie allegedly embroiled in Brockman $2 billion tax evasion

Swiss bank Mirabaud & Cie. is being asked by an influential U.S. lawmaker whether it told the Internal Revenue Service about a businessman's accounts that are now part of America's most significant individual tax-evasion case.

Mirabaud says Brockman' went to great lengths to deceive the bank

Senator Ron Wyden, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, asked in a letter whether Mirabaud told the IRS about the existence of accounts that benefited Robert Brockman, a Houston software tycoon indicted on charges of evading taxes on $2 billion in income over two decades.

Swiss prosecutors froze about $950 million in Brockman accounts at Mirabaud after his indictment last October.

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1. US senator Ron Wyden has reportedly written to Swiss bank Mirabaud & Cie concerning a tax evasion case involving Houston software tycoon Robert Brockman.
2. Brockman faces charges for evading taxes from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) using several Caribbean entities and Bermudian and Swiss bank accounts.
3. Wyde asked the bank whether it had informed the IRS about the businessman's accounts related to the case, Bloomberg reported.
4. Last October, Swiss prosecutors froze about $950m in Brockman accounts at Mirabaud after being slammed with the charges.
5. Wyden was quoted as saying in the letter to the Swiss bank: "I am deeply concerned by the duration and scale of this alleged tax evasion scheme, particularly the ability to hide billions of dollars offshore from the IRS for such an extended period of time."
6. The Swiss bank has been asked to submit its response by 1 October 2021.
7. Meanwhile, Mirabaud, in a statement, said that it did not know about Brockman's involvement.
8. The bank said that the U.S. charges against the software tycoon make clear that:

• "Mr. Brockman went to great lengths to deceive Mirabaud about his real involvement in the accounts held with the bank; none of them was in his name."

9. The bank is fully cooperating with the U.S. authorities and has 'fully implemented procedures to comply with requirements on reporting about U.S. account holders”, it said; 

10. Mirabaud is not charged with malpractice in the case, which is said to be the largest tax evasion case in the U.S. against an individual.
11. Brockman allegedly eluded taxes on $2bn in income over two decades.
12. After he was pressed with the indictment, the U.S. authorities filed a forfeiture lawsuit seeking $78m from Mirabaud.

• This money was held in an account in the name of Edge Capital Investment,
• an entity set up by Evatt Tamine and controlled by Brockman.

13. Tamine was a lawyer who worked for Brockman. He is also one of the nominees for
    1. Point Investments, which is another account set up at the Swiss lender.

Sources

https://www.privatebankerinternational.com/news/us-senator-questions-swiss-bank-mirabaud-over-tax-evasion-case/

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-09-15/swiss-bank-mirabaud-questioned-by-senator-on-tax-evasion-scandal