Swiss banker pleads guilty

A former Credit Suisse banker pleaded guilty on Wednesday to trying to keep the IRS away from the assets of American clients.

{mosads}Andreas Bachmann, a 56-year old Swiss citizen, admitted that he would travel to the U.S. roughly twice a year over a dozen year span to advise clients on how to hide investments from the IRS.

Executives at the subsidiary Bachmann worked at knew what he was doing, the former banker said, with the chief executive effectively telling him: “Mr. Bachmann, you know what we expect of you, don’t get caught.”

Bachmann faces a maximum of five years in prison when he is sentenced in August. Credit Suisse is currently under investigation by the Justice Department, and a recent Senate report found it helped U.S. clients hide some $10 billion worth of assets.

“Today’s plea is just the latest step in our wide-ranging investigations into Swiss banking activities and demonstrates the Department of Justice’s commitment to global enforcement against those that facilitate offshore tax evasion,” James Cole, the deputy attorney general, said in a statement. “We fully expect additional developments over the course of the coming months.”