By Curt Anderson

The Associated Press

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — A former top executive with Swiss bank UBS has pleaded not guilty to U.S. fraud conspiracy charges stemming from a broad federal tax evasion investigation.

Raoul Weil entered the plea Tuesday in a Florida courtroom to charges first filed in 2008. He was a fugitive until his arrest in October in Italy and was later extradited to the U.S. He is free on $10.5 million bail.

Prosecutors say Weil conspired to hide $20 billion in assets from the IRS using secret overseas accounts for thousands of wealthy customers. Weil's lawyers in Switzerland have insisted he is innocent.

In 2009, UBS paid a $780 million fine and turned over names of customers suspected of evading U.S. taxes. Many have been prosecuted since and others paid penalties and back taxes.