The IRS seized millions dollars from innocent individuals and businesses because it was easier than targeting terrorists and drug dealers, a new report from the Treasury Department’s internal watchdog has revealed.
A report from Treasury’s Inspector General found that the IRS misused a law aimed at cracking down on organized crime and terrorism to target innocent individuals and businesses. Agents adopted a policy of seizing cash before investigating for other wrongdoing because it was just easier to seize the money of innocent people than hardened criminals and terrorists.
“One of the reasons why legal source cases were pursued was that the Department of Justice had encouraged task forces to engage in ‘quick hits,’ where property was more quickly seized and more quickly resolved through negotiation, rather than pursuing cases with other criminal activity (such as drug trafficking and money laundering), which are more time-consuming,” according to the report .
The report looks at the IRS practice of seizing cash from businesses and individuals suspected of committing “structuring,” an illegal act that involves intentionally splitting up large sums of cash into amounts less than $10,000 to avoid a reporting requirement.
The policy against structuring came into law as part of the federal Bank Secrecy act. Its purpose was to assist the IRS in deterring criminal activity such as the sale of illegal drugs and terrorism.
A report from Treasury’s Inspector General found that the IRS misused a law aimed at cracking down on organized crime and terrorism to target innocent individuals and businesses. Agents adopted a policy of seizing cash before investigating for other wrongdoing because it was just easier to seize the money of innocent people than hardened criminals and terrorists.
“One of the reasons why legal source cases were pursued was that the Department of Justice had encouraged task forces to engage in ‘quick hits,’ where property was more quickly seized and more quickly resolved through negotiation, rather than pursuing cases with other criminal activity (such as drug trafficking and money laundering), which are more time-consuming,” according to the report .
The report looks at the IRS practice of seizing cash from businesses and individuals suspected of committing “structuring,” an illegal act that involves intentionally splitting up large sums of cash into amounts less than $10,000 to avoid a reporting requirement.
The policy against structuring came into law as part of the federal Bank Secrecy act. Its purpose was to assist the IRS in deterring criminal activity such as the sale of illegal drugs and terrorism.