In an interview with “60 Minutes” on Sunday, former banker Bradley Birkenfeld argued that his prison sentence should be reduced and that he should be paid for stepping forward in a case that has resulted in a wide-ranging federal investigation into overseas tax havens used by U.S. citizens.
Birkenfeld’s arrest at the Boston airport two years ago began the process that eventually exposed offshore banking practices at Zurich-based banking giant UBS. His subsequent cooperation with federal law enforcement officials has kept legions of lawyers busy investigating and defending against charges of tax fraud at UBS and other tax havens overseas that cater to U.S. clients.
