U.S. says Russian banker Tinkov charged with tax fraud

Russian businessman Oleg Tinkov, the founder of TCS Group, has been charged with filing false tax returns, the U.S. Department of Justice said. If convicted, Tinkov faces a maximum of six years in prison and monetary penalties on two counts of making false tax claims, the justice department said in a statement on Thursday.

It said Tinkov had allegedly concealed $1 billion in assets and incomes when renouncing his U.S. citizenship in 2013. TCS said this week Tinkov was taking part in court hearings in London initiated by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service in response to allegations he underreported tax.

Tinkov was arrested in London last week, but TCS said he was released on bail. The Justice Department said it was assisting with his extradition.

A spokesman for Tinkov declined to comment. Tinkov did not immediately respond.