IRS Criminal Investigation Lisa C. Fontanette Supervisory Special Agent

IRS-CI’s Mission Statement Criminal Investigation serves the American public by investigating potential criminal violations of the Internal Revenue Code and related financial crimes in a manner that fosters confidence in the tax system and compliance with the law.   While not everyone may agree with the amount of taxes they are required to pay, everyone should agree that some level of taxes needs to be levied in order for us to have a functioning government and military. We also want to know that if we are faithfully paying our fair share of taxes, that our neighbors also better be paying theirs too. Our job at IRS-CI is to pursue those cases that will have the maximum effect on encouraging confidence in, and compliance with, the tax system.

26 USC § 7206(1) – Filing a false return TITLE 26 26 USC § 7201 – Tax evasion 26 USC § 7203 – Failure to file 26 USC § 7206(1) – Filing a false return 26 USC § 7206(2) – Aiding in filing of a false return (tax preparer) The Internal Revenue Code is found in Title 26 of the US Code. These are some of the primary statutes charged by IRS-CI. The IRS-CI is the only federal law enforcement agency that can investigate potential criminal violations of the Internal Revenue Code. Explain the difference between the misdemeanor charge of failing to file and the felony charge of tax evasion. Explain the “under penalty of perjury” statement on every tax return and that by signing it, you are declaring everything is true and accurate, even if your CPA prepared it. We also aggressively pursue tax preparers who prepare false returns.

OTHER FINANCIAL CRIMES Title 18 Statutes regarding the various forms of money laundering Title 31 Statutes regarding the various Bank Secrecy Act reporting requirements Also investigate bank fraud, wire fraud, mail fraud, embezzlement, conspiracy, and terrorism among others Because tax evasion is tied to so many other crimes, IRS-CI has been given authority to charge certain Title 18 and Title 31 statutes. Money laundering is essentially tax evasion in process. Criminals rarely report their ill-gotten gains. Explain some of the Title 31 reporting forms and the requirement to submit them to FINCEN (CTR, SAR, 8300). We also routinely investigate many other financially-related crimes as part of the Grand Jury investigative process, including terrorism financing.

WAR ON TERRORISM CI participates in every major terrorism financing investigation, many of which involve violations of the Internal Revenue Code and related offenses. We also assist the Treasury Department in efforts to locate and freeze terrorist funds and repatriate stolen Iraqi assets. Some of our investigations have centered on the use of non-profit charities as a front to raise funds to finance terrorism abroad and the use of money remitters to transmit funds into and out of the United States. From 2003 to 2005, the Treasury has frozen $1.9 billion in funds domestically that belonged to the former Iraqi regime. The United States was able to take title to these assets and return over $1.7 billion directly to Iraq for reconstruction, administration, and humanitarian assistance and $207 million to the Development Fund for Iraq (DFI). In addition, over $3 billion has been frozen outside the United States, of which over $500 million has been transferred to the DFI. All of this is part of the larger effort to ensure that such funds are returned to the Iraqi people and not otherwise used to destabilize Iraq, attack coalition forces, or support terrorists. (while dated, these figures were the most recent that I could find)

JOINT TASK FORCES National Joint Terrorism Task Force Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) Federal Bureau of Investigation Drug Enforcement Administration U.S. Postal Inspection Service Bureau of Immigration & Customs Enforcement U.S. Marshalls Service Alcohol Tobacco & Firearms IRS Criminal Investigation U.S. Coast Guard State & local law enforcement Domestically, IRS-CI provides financial expertise to several joint task forces and works regularly with all of the other federal law enforcement agencies, along with state and local police. Share experience with a couple of bulk cash smuggling stops worked with the TXDPS, DEA, and ICE (if time permits).

REGIONAL OFFICES About 2,600 special agents world-wide IRS-CI has attaches in the following countries: Baghdad, Iraq Barbados, Caribbean Islands Bogota, Colombia Frankfurt, Germany Hong Kong London, England UK Mexico City, Mexico Ottawa, Canada

HIRING QUALIFICATIONS Basic Requirements: United States citizen Age 37 or under at the time of certification Available to work anywhere in the US Must carry and use a firearm Have a valid driver's license Pass an agency-administered physical fitness test* This is a Federal Law Enforcement position. Be prepared to carry and shoot a firearm. Must qualify in the use of firearms after appointment and re-qualify on a periodic basis. Min 15 semester hours or 23 quarter hours of accounting with 9 additional semester hours (14 quarter hours) of closely related business classes (IRS-CI is the only federal law enforcement agency that requires this for all of their agents). The education and /or experience qualifications is listed on the IRS Careers website (http://jobs.irs.gov/car_law_cisaQual.html). Law Enforcement Retirement - subject to mandatory retirement at age 57 with at least 20 years of creditable service as a law enforcement officer. Mobility agreement.

*Physical Fitness Qualification Standards 1.5 Mile Run Sit-Ups Push-Ups Flexibility Body Fat

SELECTION PROCESS Three Components: Treasury Enforcement Agent (TEA) examination – GS-5/7 only Accounting Assessment (accounting skills exercise) Skills Assessment Center (structured interview and writing exercise) In additional to meeting Office of Personnel Management qualifications, applicants will be assessed to ensure all requisite competencies are met. Vacancy announcement will outline the requirements.

PRE-EMPLOYMENT PROCESS Drug test Verify medical qualifications via agency-provided physical examination Background investigation Pre-appointment tax audit No drug use! Minimum sight and hearing requirements. Vision:  uncorrected distant vision must test 20/200, and corrected distant vision must test 20/20 in one eye, and 20/30 in the other.  Hearing:  hearing loss, as measured by an audiometer, must not exceed 30 decibels (A.S.A.) in either ear in the 500, 1000 and 2000 Hz ranges. Background investigation is very thorough. Worse thing you can do is lie or cover up an incident. A felony conviction or a misdemeanor domestic violence conviction will immediately preclude you. Make sure you do not have any major tax issues before applying! As an IRS employee, we are held to the highest standard of tax compliance. Oral interview examines your ability to think critically on your feet given different scenarios.

Medical Qualification Standards General Medical Requirements: Manual dexterity with comparatively free motion of fingers, wrists, elbows, shoulders, hips and knee joints. Arms, hands, legs, and feet must function sufficiently to satisfactorily perform duties. Diseases/conditions resulting in indistinct speech or affecting any of the body’s systems (e.g., respiratory, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, musculoskeletal, nervous, or endocrine) that would impair full performance of the duties is disqualifying. Agents must possess emotional/mental stability and be free of any condition that would hinder full, efficient performance or cause the individual to be a hazard to him/herself or others. Hearing: Hearing loss, as measured by an audiometer, must not exceed 30 decibels or equivalent in either ear in the 500, 1000, & 2000 Hz ranges. Vision: Uncorrected distant vision must test 20/200. Corrected distant vision must test 20/20 in one eye, and 20/30 in the other. Normal depth perception and peripheral vision and the ability to distinguish shades of color by color plate tests are required.

CITP TRAINING 9-week training covering: Federal criminal law Courtroom procedures Enforcement operations Defensive tactics Interviewing Firearms training Criminal Investigation Training Program (CITP) is conducted at the National Criminal Investigation Training Academy at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Glynco, GA. The FLETC Glynco campus is located between Savannah, GA, and Jacksonville, FL. The Center is actually a town unto itself with its own zip code. It just outside of Brunswick, GA. Glynco is the headquarters facility for the FLETC. It is situated on 1,600 acres in southeast Georgia with modern conventional facilities such as classrooms, dormitories, and administrative and logistical support structures, including a dining hall capable of serving more than 4,000 meals per day. Additionally, Glynco has 18 firearms ranges, including a state-of-the-art indoor range complex with 146 separate firing points; and eight highly versatile semi-enclosed ranges with 200 additional firing points. Other training assets include a sprawling complex of driver training ranges, a physical techniques facility, explosives range, fully functional mock port of entry, and numerous other structures which support the entire training effort. Among these is a 34-building "neighborhood" practical exercise area, which includes houses equipped with video cameras for recording various kinds of practical exercises. The classroom buildings house various special purpose areas including a library, interviewing suites, mock court rooms, computer forensics laboratories, and other laboratories for fingerprinting and identifying narcotics.

SABT TRAINING 16-week specialized training including: Instruction in tax law, criminal tax fraud, money laundering and a variety of financial fraud schemes Agency-specific undercover operations, electronic surveillance techniques, forensic sciences, court procedures, interviewing techniques and trial preparation and testifying. Immediately after CITP, you attend Special Agent Basic Training sponsored specifically by the IRS. You are at training for a total of about 25 weeks, or 6 months. However, when you are done, you are well prepared to hit the ground running. The training is some of the best in the world.

SWORN OATH I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter.  So help me God. When you are first hired and also at graduation, you take the following oath. Law enforcement is a noble profession. You are an extension of the Legislative Branch of the government and you pledge to defend the laws of the land.

AUTHORITY GRANTED Authority to investigate, execute, and serve search warrants and arrest warrants, serve subpoenas and summonses, make arrests without warrant, carry firearms, make seizures of property subject to forfeiture and to require and receive information, as to all matters relating to such laws and regulations. There is a lot of responsibility that comes with being a law enforcement officer and carrying the credentials/badge, but that is what makes the job interesting.

FOR MORE INFO http://www.irs.gov http://jobs.irs.gov/car_lenforcement.html