WikiLeaks has details of rich and famous tax evaders

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is ready to publish details of rich and famous individuals involved in mass tax evasion. They are said to include politicians, business people and multi national conglomerates.

Assange revealed that he has received details from whistleblower Rudolf Elmer who is due to stand trial in Switzerland on charges of stealing the information for his former employer Julius Baer Bank.

Elmer has given Assange two CDs said to contain information about high net worth individuals including 40 politicians, business people, multinational conglomerates and figures from the art world in Britain, the US, Germany, Austria and Asia.

‘I do think, as a banker, I have the right to stand up if something is wrong. I am against the system. I know how the system works and I know the day to day business. From that point of view, I wanted to let society know what I know. It is damaging our society,’ said Elmer.

The names could be published on the WikiLeaks website in two weeks, once they have been verified, Assange said. He revealed that Wikileaks had dealt with the Julius Baer issue in 2008.

‘It is not a new issue for us. I have read some of Mr Elmer's writings. He is clearly a bona fide whistleblower and therefore I feel, given the past involvement in the case, that we have some duty to support him on that matter,’ added Assange.

WikiLeaks published data about the bank in 2008 which resulted in lawyers for Julius Baer seeking an injunction to have wikileaks.org seized and destroyed. ‘That case was a resounding success for us and the bank lost their injunction on first amendment grounds,’ said Assange.

Assange said the time it would take to release the documents online depended on how much information was provided by Elmer. ‘We will treat this information like all other information we get. Once we have looked at the data, there will be a full revelation. If we can delegate the matter appropriately, it could be a couple of weeks, if not it will take longer,’ said Assange.

Elmer is due to appear before a Zurich regional court later this week to answer charges of coercion and violating Switzerland’s strict banking secrecy laws.

Elmer said he will admit certain counts of coercion, but insisted he didn’t break Swiss banking secrecy laws because the files he distributed belonged to a Julius Baer subsidiary in the Cayman Islands, where he worked for the bank for eight years. ‘This data wasn't subject to Swiss banking secrecy,’ he told The Associated Press in a telephone interview.