Irish Justice Minister Warns That Bank Officials Will Be Targeted In Tax Evasion Probe

by Carla Johnson, Investors Offshore.com

23 October 2003

Speaking out this week, Ireland's Justice Minister, Michael McDowell issued a warning to bank officials who facilitated their clients' tax evasion via offshore schemes, revealing that they too will be investigated and prosecuted.

"It is my view that the bogus DIRT thing was a huge scam and that banks did participate in trying to recruit people to those schemes and are therefore culpable," he announced, continuing:

"We can't simply walk away from massive billion euro evasion programmes and simply say these things happen."

Following the recent revelation that financial institutions in the Channel Islands could have as much as 4 billion euros in bank accounts belonging to Irish residents, Green Party finance spokesman Dan Boyle expressed a similar opinion, observing of the offshore accounts offered by banks located in the Republic that:

"These were financial products that were widely and very publicly advertised - in the press, on the radio, and through internet banners. The nod and wink references in this advertising to accounts being offshore and being handled "confidentially" surely should have sent alarm bells ringing a number of years ago."

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