((a)) ** .—** Subject to subsection (b), a suit for recovery of damages under shall not be maintained unless commenced within 10 years after the date the cause of action accrued.

((b)) ** .—** The time of the absence of the defendant from the United States or from any jurisdiction in which the same or a similar action arising from the same facts may be maintained by the plaintiff, or of any concealment of the defendant’s whereabouts, shall not be included in the 10-year period set forth in subsection (a).