Reuters reports Spain’s High Court ruled Wednesday that it would not extradite Herve Falciani, a former HSBC employee “wanted in Switzerland on allegations of stealing data on tens of thousands of Swiss bank accounts that a number of European countries have used to pursue suspected tax evaders.” The court indicated the charges are not crimes under Spanish law. Falciani, who has Italian and French citizenship, has reportedly “acknowledged taking the data but describes himself as a whistleblower against what he calls ‘scandalous’ practices at Swiss banks.” Authorities in France, Germany, Italy and Spain have used Falciani’s data to pursue lost taxes, the report states, noting Switzerland has three days to appeal the court's decision.
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