The Kleptocurrency Asset Recovery Rewards Program allows for rewards up to $5 million for information leading to the seizure, forfeiture, or repatriation of stolen assets. Several nations have now seized yachts, jets, and villas from sanctioned Russian oligarchs over the invasion of Ukraine. The information must lead to the repatriation of stolen assets in an account at a U.S. financial institution, that enters the U.S., or that comes into the possession or control of a U.S. person. Besides Russia, the Treasury has specifically listed requests for tips about assets linked to bribes paid by Brazilian petrochemical companies Odebrecht and Braskem, as well as corruption involving the Sovereign Wealth Fund of Maylasiaknown as IMDB.
In the Department of Justice, The Bank Integrity Unit investigates and prosecutes complex, multi-district, and international criminal cases involving financial institutions and individuals who violate various federal statutes, including the Money Laundering Control Act, the Bank Secrecy Act, and economic and trade sanctions programs authorized by the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. The Unit’s prosecutions generally focus on banks and other financial institutions, including their officers, managers, and employees, whose actions threaten the integrity of the individual institution or the wider financial system.
The International Unit is comprised of two teams. The International Assistance Team assists U.S. prosecutors in the restraint and forfeiture of assets located abroad, litigates in U.S. courts to assist foreign governments seeking restraint and forfeiture of assets in the United States, and authorizes certain actions to forfeit funds held in correspondent accounts. The International Assistance Team also represents the Department in multilateral organizations to raise international standards for combating financial crime and provides technical assistance to foreign governments on legislation, mutual legal assistance, and best practices in anti-money laundering and forfeiture. The Kleptocracy Team is responsible for implementing the Department’s Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative through investigation and litigation to recover the proceeds of foreign official corruption. The Initiative focuses on assets in the U.S. or which used the U.S. financial system.
The Special Financial Investigations Unit (SFIU) is comprised of attorneys, investigators and analysts who serve as MLARS’ experts on complex financial investigations. In this capacity, the unit supplements the resources of our law enforcement partners to conduct complex financial investigations in conjunction with the MLARS’ litigating units. The Unit also serves as MLARS’ targeting unit, helping the litigating units to set investigative priorities. The SFIU is MLARS’ liaison to the interagency operational law enforcement centers and the intelligence community, and coordinates MLARS’ classified litigation. Treasury will receive all relevant whistleblower tips; however, it will also advertise certain areas about which the government is particularly interested in receiving information leading to the restraint, seizure, forfeiture, or repatriation of stolen assets linked to foreign government corruption. For example, federal agencies are currently seeking information leading to the seizure, restraint, forfeiture, or repatriation of bribes or assets linked to bribes paid by Odebrecht S.A., a global construction conglomerate based in Brazil, and Braskem S.A., a petrochemical company based in Brazil. In 2016, Odebrecht and Braskem pled guilty and agreed to pay approximately $3.5 billion in global penalties to resolve the largest foreign bribery case in history .Although the Treasury Department promises to keep the whistleblower’s identity and the information provided strictly confidential with very limited exceptions, it is likely that only a handful of people would know details about where an oligarch’s assets are held. Once government investigations and enforcement actions begin, the corrupt individual would have a very short list of whistleblower suspects, putting the whistleblower at grave risk.In connection with the Russian Elites, Proxies, and Oligarchs (REPO) meeting on March 16, 2022, Treasury is providing attendees with a list of 50 individuals who are priorities for the
United States.
Treasury has publicly released 28 names of individuals from the list who have been sanctioned
by multiple jurisdictions, including the United States.
Jeffrey Newman is a whistleblower lawyer who can be reached at jeff@jeffnewmanlaw.com or at 617-823-3217
