Moreover, Bergantino understood that a number of his US clients concealed their ownership and control of foreign financial accounts by holding those accounts in the names of nominee tax haven entities, or structures, which were frequently created in the form of foreign partnerships, trusts, corporations or foundations.
Bergantino also admitted traveling to the United States one or two times a year to meet with clients, taking careful steps to conceal the purpose of his visits from US law enforcement.
He used private couriers to send clients’ account statements to the US hotels where he stayed, so that he would not be caught traveling with clients’ statements in his possession.
On entering the United States, Bergantino provided misleading information regarding the nature and purpose of his visit to US Customs and Border Protection authorities.
In addition to assisting customers evade tax, Bergantino also provided illegal advice to US customers regarding investments in US securities. Neither Bergantino nor Credit Suisse were registered with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and both US law and Credit Suisse policy prohibited Bergantino and other Credit Suisse employees from providing investment advice in the United States.
Nevertheless, Credit Suisse management pressured its employees, including Bergantino, to make sales in the United States.
Third guilty plea
“Mr Bergantino is now the third fugitive to come to the United States and plead guilty to charges in this case,” said acting assistant attorney general Caroline Ciraolo. “To those who have actively assisted US taxpayers in using offshore accounts to evade taxes, the message is clear: staying outside the United States will provide little comfort. We will investigate and charge you, and will work relentlessly to hold you to account for your actions.”
“Hiding assets and creating secret accounts in an attempt to evade income taxes is a losing game,” said US attorney Dana Boente. “[This] plea shows that we will continue to prosecute bankers and US citizens who engage in this criminal activity. I want to thank our law enforcement partners and prosecutors for their work on this important case.”
Not FATCA
The US introduced the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) in March 2010, which mandates that all US taxpayers disclose any and all offshore accounts and/or assets.
As the offences committed by Bergantino and his colleagues was committed between 2002 and 2009, they fall outside the scope of FATCA.
