CORRECTED-Israel tax evasion probe leads to 28 arrests

(Corrects headline to remove reference to probe at UBS)

Dec 8 (Reuters) – Israel has arrested 28 people so far as part of an investigation into Israelis allegedly holding undisclosed bank accounts with Swiss bank UBS, the Tax Authority said on Monday.

“The investigation continues and more arrests are expected,” the authority said in a statement, noting that the suspects had been released on bail.

“During the investigation it was revealed … that at UBS in Switzerland thousands of accounts held by Israelis are being managed, and it is suspected that the vast majority of money held in the accounts is not reported to the tax authority,” it said.

There have been no indictments yet as the investigation is ongoing.

A UBS spokesman in Zurich said the bank as well as its Israel office are not part of the investigation and would not comment further.

Israel is starting to crack down on foreign bank accounts held by its citizens after a similar move by the United States to track accounts held by Americans abroad.

Last month, Israel’s Tax Authority said the allegedly undisclosed bank accounts at UBS were worth millions of euros. (Reporting by Steven Scheer; editing by Susan Thomas)