The Internal Revenue Service gave Ex-Banker, Bradley Berkenfelt $104 million dollars for giving them information about overseas taxpayers who were cheating the government. This is the largest amount ever awarded by the IRS to a whistle blower.

Mr. Berkenfelt is a former Swiss Banker, who exposed widespread tax evasion at a US Bank called UBS AG. He personally went to prison for 2 ½ years for a tax conviction related to the case. However, this resulted in a $780 million dollar fine against the bank he worked for, in an agreement requiring UBS to turn over the names of suspected American tax dodgers to the IRS. “The IRS Today sent 104 million messages to whistle blowers around the world-but there is now a safe and secure way to report tax fraud, and the IRS is now paying awards” Steven M. Kohn , Attorney for Mr. Berkenfelt.

The IRS Spokes Woman, Michelle Eldridge said “the IRS believes that the whistle blower statue provides a valuable tool to combat tax non-compliance, and this award reflects our commitment to the law.”

The amount of the award is a record and the first of its kind. However, it shows how serious the IRS is in pursuing taxpayers who try to evade paying the IRS.