The FYE 2015 IRS CI Report (12/5/15)

CI has issued its FYE 2015 report, here.  The report is similar to past reports in presenting the materials.  I offer certain excerpts from the report below.  One key theme of the report is the decreases in budget, leading to decreasing staff resources and decreasing investigative results.  See on this theme my recent blog, Good Article on the State of CI (Federal Tax Crimes Blog 12/3/15), here. IRS CI reports some statistics in the report and does have a web page with even more statistics, here, including some presented in the report.  I will discuss the statistics on the investigative results when the FYE 2015 IRS Data Book comes out that will offer the statistics in slightly different ways that will permit me to dig out certain key statistics not offered in the report.

Here are the excerpts related principally to offshore account matters

[*1]  

The Swiss Bank program continued to provide solid leads and information that we are using to develop other cases around the world. Bank Leumi admitted to assisting U.S. taxpayers in hiding assets in offshore bank accounts, disclosed more than 1,500 U.S. account holders and agreed to pay a total of $270 million. This was the first time an Israeli bank has admitted to such criminal conduct. 

[*17] 

Abusive Tax Schemes 

Within the Abusive Tax Schemes program, CI focuses on the investigation of promoters and clients who willfully participate in domestic and/or offshore tax schemes for the purpose of violating the tax laws. Participants in these abusive schemes usually create structures such as trusts, foreign corporations and partnerships for the purpose of making it appear that a trustee, nominee, non-resident alien or other foreign entity is the owner of the assets and income, when in fact the true ownership and control remains with a United States taxpayer. 

[*18] 

Four Pennsylvania Family Members Sentenced for Tax Fraud 

On July 23, 2015, in Allentown, Pennsylvania, four Lancaster County family members were sentenced to prison for their participation in a long-term, complex and concerted effort to avoid taxation. In October 2010, Chester A. Bitterman Jr. and his sons, Craig L. Bitterman, C. Grant Bitterman and Curtis L. Bitterman, were convicted of conspiracy to defraud the United States. Craig Bitterman was additionally convicted of obstruction of justice. Prior to sentencing, the defendants paid $437,000 in restitution to the IRS. The four were sentenced as follows: Craig L. Bitterman was sentenced to 36 months in prison; C. Grant Bitterman was sentenced to 21 months in prison; Curtis L. Bitterman was sentenced to 21 months in prison; and Chester A. Bitterman Jr. was sentenced to three years’ probation. According to court documents, from 1996 to 2005, the Bittermans owned and operated the Bitterman Scale Company. To conceal their income and assets from the IRS, the Bittermans used aliases, offshore bank accounts and a complex series of sham paper transactions to disguise income. The defendants transferred their personal and business assets to sham trusts purchased from the Commonwealth Trust Company, an organization that marketed trust products to clients for the purpose of avoiding federal income tax payment. The trusts were used to make it appear as though the defendants had little or no assets or income. In reality, the defendants retained complete access and control over their funds. 

[*33] 

INTERNATIONAL OPERATIONS 

The immense growth in the utilization of global financial markets presents new challenges to tax administration worldwide. CI’s Office of International Operations (IO) promotes a comprehensive international strategy in responding to global financial crimes and provides support in combating offshore tax evasion. Since the means to evade taxes and commit fraud is not limited by sovereign borders, international collaboration is vital to CI’s efforts to combat offshore tax evasion and fraud committed by individuals.
CI has special agent attachés strategically stationed in 10 foreign countries. Attachés continue to build strong alliances with our foreign government and law enforcement partners. These strong alliances provide CI with the ability to develop international case leads and to support domestic investigations with an international nexus. CI attachés are especially focused on promoters from international banking institutions who facilitate United States taxpayers in evading their United States tax requirements. There are several senior analysts assigned to CI headquarters who are responsible for managing program areas designed to generate investigative leads. 

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In 2015 IO created the Investigation Development and Support Unit (IDS). The IDS is a newly created section of IO that was formed when the former International Lead Development Center (ILDC), Offshore Voluntary Compliance group and the Counterterrorism Center (CTC) were merged together and placed under one management structure. This new unit is located in the Office of International Strategy and Policy. The new unit continues to offer its resources to the field in a case support capacity
while also focusing on developing significant financial investigations independent of the leads being received. 

The growth of the CI footprint internationally has increased the opportunities for case development. The IDS is specifically tasked with conducting research on potential international criminal investigations. In addition, CI has personnel assigned to Interpol and the International Organized Crime Intelligence and Operations Center (IOC-2) to combat the threats posed by international criminal organizations, assist in joint investigations and the apprehension of international fugitives. 

* * * *

Examples of international investigations adjudicated in FY 2015 include: 

Tax Return Preparers Sentenced for Hiding Offshore Account and Assisting Wealthy Clients to Hide Millions in Secret Accounts 

On Aug. 10, 2015, in Los Angeles, California, David Kalai was sentenced to 36 months in prison, three years of supervised release, with a condition of home confinement to last the entire term of release, and ordered to pay a $286,000 fine. Nadav Kalai, David Kalai’s son, was sentenced to 50 months in prison, three years of supervised release and ordered to pay a $10,000 fine. The Kalais were principals of United Revenue Service Inc. (URS), a tax return preparation business with 12 offices located throughout the United States. On Dec. 19, 2014, the Kalais were convicted of conspiracy to defraud the IRS and two counts of willfully failing to file a Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR). The Kalais advised and assisted their high net-worth clients in concealing millions of dollars of assets and income in secret foreign bank accounts and filing false federal income tax returns. The Kalais also maintained a secret offshore account of their own at Bank Leumi in Luxembourg in the name of a foreign sham corporation and failed to disclose the account to the IRS or the U.S. Treasury. The Kalais purposefully prepared false individual income tax returns for their URS clients that did not disclose the clients’ foreign financial accounts nor report the income earned from those accounts. In order to conceal the clients’ income, ownership and control of assets from the IRS, the Kalais incorporated offshore companies in Belize and elsewhere and helped clients open secret bank accounts at the Luxembourg locations of two Israeli banks, Bank Leumi and Bank B. Three URS clients who testified at the Kalais’ trial have pleaded guilty to tax felonies arising from their participation in the scheme. The Kalais each failed to file an FBAR for calendar years 2008 and 2009 with respect to a foreign account held at Bank Leumi in Luxembourg.

[*41] 

Bank Secrecy Act 

The Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) mandates the reporting of certain currency transactions conducted with a financial institution, the disclosure of foreign bank accounts, and the reporting of the transportation of currency across United States borders. Through the analysis of 

BSA data, CI has experienced success in identifying significant and complex money laundering schemes and other financial crimes. CI is the largest consumer of BSA data.
The CI BSA Program has grown substantially since its inception in the early 2000s when CI helped establish the initial 41 Suspicious Activity Report Review Teams (SAR-RT). The mission then, as it is today, was to scrutinize BSA data to identify and target significant illicit financial criminal activity. The current BSA program is comprised of participation in 94 SAR-RTs (one in each judicial district and led by the responsible U.S. Attorney Office), and sponsorship and management of 55 Financial Crimes Task Forces (FCTF) throughout the country. The FCTF involves collaboration between CI and state or local law enforcement agencies for the purpose of identifying and investigating specific geographic area illicit financial crimes, including BSA violations, money laundering, narcotics trafficking, terrorist financing and even tax evasion. More than 150 state or local agencies have joined FCTFs across the country and have detailed more than 350 law enforcement officers to become Task Force Officers. The Task Force Officers are granted the authority to investigate money laundering and BSA violations under the direction of CI. All task force investigations are conducted at the federal level and IRS-CI policies regarding authorized investigative techniques, enforcement actions, and seizures are followed by all the participants. CI strengthens the BSA program area by maintaining excellent working relationships with anti-money laundering officials within the financial industry. Additionally, CI also maintains excellent relationships with IRS civil functions responsible for Title 31 Compliance and other external sources. These relationships are developed at the headquarters and field office levels through outreach activities. 

[*42] 

In FY 2015, FinCEN approved two Geographic Targeting Orders (GTOs). On Oct. 2, 2014, FinCEN approved a GTO for certain businesses located within the Los Angeles Fashion District. The order imposes additional reporting and recordkeeping obligations on certain trades and businesses located within the Los Angeles Fashion District. The GTO will enhance the IRS’ ability to identify and pursue cases against person and businesses engaged in the illicit movement of U.S. currency to Mexico and Columbia using the black market peso exchange, sometimes known as trade based money laundering. In February 2015, the order was extended for another 180 days. On April 21, 2015, FinCEN approved a GTO for the Miami area (including surrounding counties) to enforce additional record keeping requirements on check cashing businesses/MSBs. To help combat identity theft and refund fraud, FinCEN added additional requirements for cashing Treasury checks and Refund Anticipation Loans (RAL). Additional record keeping requirements include but are not limited to requesting the customer provide two forms of identification, a photo ID and a fingerprint on the check. 

[*46] 

Under Forfeitures:

BNP Paribas S.A. (Washington DCFO) – On May 1, 2015, BNP Paribas was sentenced to afive-year term of probation and ordered to forfeit more than $3.9 billion. BNP Paribas is the largest bank in France and one of the five largest banks in the world in terms of total assets. The sentencing is the first time a financial institution has been convicted and sentenced for violations of U.S. economic sanctions and the total financial penalty including the forfeiture and criminal fine is the largest financial penalty ever imposed in a criminal case.