Hanno Berger, a German lawyer dubbed the mastermind of Cum-Ex, was sentenced to eight years in prison for his role in part of a sprawling tax scandal that's robbed billions of euros from government coffers and embroiled some of Wall Street's biggest names.
Berger was found guilty of three counts of aggravated tax evasion in a judgment at a Bonn court on Tuesday, according to the DPA newswire. Prosecutors had sought nine years. He was on trial for allegedly having participated in transactions that cost the government €278 million ($295 million).
Once Germany's most profitable tax attorney, Berger fled the country in 2012 when his Frankfurt law firm was raided. After more than nine years in Switzerland, he was
Cum-Ex took advantage of laws that seemed to allow duplicate refunds on dividend taxes that siphoned off massive amounts of government revenue over several years. Germany is looking at more than 1,600 suspects from across the financial industry and banks from Morgan Stanley to JPMorgan Chase.
Berger was a key player, advising rich investors on how to use the strategy that until about 2005 had been limited to the trading between banks. His actions were widely discussed at the first German Cum-ex trial in Bonn that led to convictions of two former investment bankers in March. One of his former associates is cooperating with prosecutors and told the court about Berger's role in the deals.
His defense lawyer Richard Beyer didn't immediately reply to an email seeking comment.
