UBS whistelblower Birkenfeld lodges request for return to Europe

Bradley Birkenfeld makes remarks before surrendering to authorities at the Schuylkill County Federal Correctional Institution in Minersville, Pennsylvania, January 8, 2010. REUTERS/Tim Shaffer

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla./ZURICH (Reuters) - Ex-UBS banker Bradley Birkenfeld, a whistleblower in a tax fraud case involving the Swiss bank for which he was awarded $104 million (67 million pounds) after serving more than two years in prison, has lodged a request to be allowed to return to Europe.

U.S. tax authorities awarded Birkenfeld a nine-figure payout in 2012 under an Internal Revenue Service whistleblower programme, after his tips led Swiss bank UBS to settle with U.S. regulators in 2009 for $780 million in fines, penalties, interest and restitution.