It was the worst catastrophe imaginable for the discreet Liechtenstein trustees and their international clientele: Heinrich Kieber, an employee of the Princely trust company LGT, illegally copied the firm’s entire client database and in 2008 sold the stolen data to the German intelligence agency BND, the US Internal Revenue Service, the Australian Taxation Office, and British authorities. In return he was paid several million euro, as well as a new identity, new passports, and a safe haven by one of the grateful governments. For the finance ministers of the world, Heinrich Kieber is a hero – for the wealthy Liechtensteiners, a traitor. But who is Heinrich Kieber really? Since his earliest childhood, Heinrich led an eventful double life: the outsider from a children’s home, his youth as a runaway, his cons and frauds in Germany, New Zealand and Australia, his kidnapping in South America, his crimes in Spain. Finally, Heinrich uses the stolen bank data to blackmail the Reigning Prince of Liechtenstein.
“Data Thief – Heinrich Kieber” is the story of the man blowing the whistle on tax evaders worldwide and cracking bank secrecy in Liechtenstein and Switzerland.
Reviews
“Data Thief – Heinrich Kieber” digs right into an open wound. Enthralling and well-made. Süddeutsche Zeitung (Germany), May 8, 2010
The film pieces together private videos and reconstructed scenes into an exciting docudrama. Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung FAZ (Germany), August 16, 2010
The filmmakers have condensed the material into a thrilling documentary. Tagblatt (Switzerland), August 4, 2010
The unbelievable life of the data thief who cracked the Liechtenstein tax haven. Die Wochenzeitung WOZ (Switzerland), May 20, 2010
The character of this anti-hero, a mixture of failed existence and ingenious conman without scruples, well-nigh grows close to the audience’s heart. Liechtensteiner Volksblatt, May 8, 2010