FIRST CLASS MAIL

Re:    URGENT REQUEST FOR COMMUTATION OF SENTENCE FOR UBS WHISTLEBLOWER BRADLEY CHARLES BIRKENFELD

Mr. Birkenfeld’s unprecedented voluntary disclosures led directly to the agreement between the United States and UBS AG for the payment of$780,000,000.00 in fines and penalties. His disclosures led to the creation of an IRS amnesty program, in which 14,700 people have come forward and admitted to illegal secret accounts, resulting in the recovery of billions of dollars by the IRS. Mr. Birkenfeld’s whistleblower contributions also led to the termination of the entire $20 billion illegal UBS program that existed to solicit and encourage wealthy Americans to hide their money in secret offshore accounts, and the creation of a new international tax treaty between the U.S. and Switzerland.
 
It has been said that Mr. Birkenfeld withheld information regarding his wealthiest client, Igor Olenicoff, but these statements are now known to be incorrect. Mr. Birkenfeld voluntarily released this information in 2007 to the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations and other government agencies. The Senate has a transcript detailing all of the disclosures Mr. Birkenfeld made, including those regarding Mr.Olenicoff, and confirms that these disclosures were made before Mr.Olenicoff was indicted or submitted any plea.

In return for his extraordinary cooperation with the U.S. government,Mr. Birkenfeld remains the only banker involved the in the largest illegal tax scheme in history to receive a prison sentence. He also spent over 19 months in a home confinement program, which included electronic monitoring, a curfew, and travel restrictions. So far,everyone prosecuted in relation to the UBS tax scheme has received minor sentences, including probation, fines, community service, no more than 3 months in prison and/or house arrest. The director of the entire UBS program, Martin Liechti, was released by U.S. authorities and allowed to return to Switzerland without any prosecution.

International treaties, signed by the U.S. fully acknowledge that bank secrecy is the handmaiden of corruption. These treaties agree that corruption undermines the rule of law and threatens human rights around the world. The destructive impact of Mr. Birkenfeld's sentencing will radically undermine the ability of law enforcement to detect, prosecute and prevent illegal off-shore banking practices.

Due the impact of Mr. Birkenfeld's disclosure on compliance and law enforcement efforts worldwide, we ask that you immediately issue a presidential pardon or commute Mr. Birkenfeld’s sentence to time served in order to ensure that the policies underlined in U.S. whistleblower laws are fully and completely vindicated.

We believe great importance must be placed on the public policy implications of Mr. Birkenfeld’s case, international bankers must be able to come forward to report illegal practices like those exposed by Mr. Birkenfeld. Please carefully evaluate Mr. Birkenfeld’s case versus the strong public interest in encouraging other whistleblowers to step forward.

Respectfully submitted,



Lindsey M. Williams, Esq.
Director of Advocacy and Development
National Whistleblowers Center

Jesselyn Radack
Homeland Security Director
Government Accountability Project

Charlie Cray
Director
Center for Corporate Policy

David W. Hutton
Executive Director
Federal Accountability Initiative for Reform (FAIR)
Canada

Zena Crenshaw Logal
Executive Director
POPULAR, Inc.

Rodney Logal
Executive Comm. Chair
National Judicial Conduct and Disability Law Project, Inc.

Dr. Andrew D. Jackson
Asst. Campaign Chair
Focus-On-Indiana

Linda Lewis
Whistleblowers USA

Joe Carson, PE
Chairman
OSC Watch Steering Committee

Don Soeken, L.C.S.W.-C, PhD
Whistleblowers Support Fund

Nancy Swan, SPMB Member
National Forum On Judicial Accountability 

Dr. Shirley Moore, National President

Disclosure Watch

  

Tom Saunders, Founder

Bill of Attainder Project

  

Josie Perez, Founder

Model Family Organization

  

L. Wilson, Founder

C.A.S.O.O. Roars

 

Diana Claitor, Director

Texas Jail Project

 

Fred Scottile, President

Fathers 4 Justice of LA

Terry Francke, General Counsel
Californians Aware

Samuel H. Sage, President
Atlantic States Legal Foundation, Inc.

James Stevens, C.E.O.

Justice Inc.

 

Betsy Combier, President
The E-Accountability Foundation

Organizations can contact Lindsey Williams at lmw@whistleblowers.org to sign the letter.

Individuals can support the campaign for a presidential pardon by Taking Action .