part9-1
- 9.1.1.1
Overview - 9.1.1.2
Criminal Investigations Mission - 9.1.1.3
Criminal Investigation Strategies - 9.1.1.4
Law Enforcement Criteria
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This section provides the following information:
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Criminal Investigations (CI) Mission
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Criminal Investigation Strategies
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Law Enforcement Criteria
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Criminal Investigation serves the American public
by investigating potential criminal violations of the Internal Revenue Code
(IRC) and related financial crimes in a manner that fosters confidence in
the tax system and compliance with the law.
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The CI strategies are:
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Compliance
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Money Laundering
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International
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Terrorism
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Criminal Investigation’s strategic objectives
are based upon the overall IRS multi-year strategic plan. -
Criminal Investigation’s strategic objectives,
operational priorities, and improvement projects are outlined in CI’s
Strategy and Program Plan (SPP). The SPP establishes the focus and commitment
of CI resources. The SPP also summarizes program information, including budget
activities, initiatives, and CI measure and workload indicators. -
The Annual Business Plan (ABP) is issued annually by the Chief, CI.
The ABP establishes strategies and operational priorities based on CI’s
SPP. Criminal Investigation’s compliance strategy establishes program
focus and commitment of CI’s resources. The ABP addresses the yearly
program direction and commitment of CI resources.
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In support of the IRS strategic plan, CI will
focus its investigative resources into three program areas:-
legal source income
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illegal source income
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narcotics
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The legal source income program addresses income tax investigations
involving:-
legal occupations and industries
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Title 26 charges
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Title 18 USC §286, 18 USC §287, and 18
USC §371 (Klein conspiracy) charges
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In the legal source income program, CI is the sole investigating agency.
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The illegal source income program addresses investigations of illegal
source financial crimes involving:-
Illegal occupations and industries
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Title 26 charges
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Title 18 charges
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Title 18 USC §371 (Klein and non-narcotic) money laundering conspiracy
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Title 18 USC §1956 and 18 USC §1957 (non-narcotic) money laundering
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Title 31 currency charges
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In the illegal source income program, the investigation may be conducted
in conjunction with another agency.
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The narcotics program involves the investigation of leaders and other
top echelon members of high-level drug trafficking organizations and their
orchestration of financial activities directing the transportation, distribution,
and laundering of illegal drug proceeds. -
Within the narcotics program, there are four sub-programs:
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Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF)
— investigations involving members of high-level drug trafficking organizations
authorized by a regional multi-agency OCDETF committee. -
High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) —
a co-located, multi-agency task force conducting investigations involving
organizations or individuals involved in narcotics trafficking or narcotics
money laundering. The task force works through the HIDTA program of the Office
of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP). -
HIDTA/OCDETF — investigations worked jointly
through OCDETF. -
Narcotics Other — investigations involving
financial activities of significant individuals or entities who direct the
transportation, distribution, and laundering of illegal drug proceeds.
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The money laundering strategy is to identify and
prosecute the most significant tax, currency, and money laundering offenders
and to pursue the assets of those offenders both domestically and internationally.
This strategy is designed to assure enforcement of the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA)
and related Federal money laundering statutes in support of the Department
of Justice and Treasury National Money Laundering Strategy (NMLS).
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The international strategy calls for assignment
of special agents as attachés to strategic foreign posts in order to
facilitate the development and use of information obtained in host foreign
nations or from other foreign sources. The attachés use the information
to support large-scale, international investigations, combat terrorist financing,
and apprehend overseas fugitives. The attachés facilitate international
financial investigative training and respond to requests for assistance from
foreign countries.
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Federal law enforcement agencies have been mobilized
to fight terrorism. In support of this national effort, CI will provide financial
investigative assistance in terrorism matters and devote resources in support
of terrorist task force initiatives to disrupt and dismantle terrorism financing
operations.
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Investigations will be identified, initiated,
and conducted in a manner that fosters confidence in the tax system and compliance
with the law. The investigations must identify individuals and organizations
that meet the compliance strategy as detailed in the ABP. In determining if
an investigation meets the definition of CIs mission, the following should
be considered:-
high profile
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egregious allegations
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deterrent effect
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conformity with ABP
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Additional criteria and deviation procedures are
detailed in Law Enforcement Manual (LEM) 9.14.1, CI Official Use Only Procedures. -
Racial profiling will not be utilized as a criteria in investigation
selection or in making investigative decisions. In June 2003, the US Assistant
Attorney General for Civil Rights issued guidance regarding the use of race
by Federal law enforcement officers.
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“Racial profiling”
at its core concerns the invidious
use of race or ethnicity as a criterion in conducting stops, searches, and
other law enforcement investigative procedures. It is premised on the erroneous
assumption that any particular individual of one race or ethnicity is more
likely to engage in misconduct than any particular individual of another race
or ethnicity. The US Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights guidance
is outlined below: -
Traditional Law Enforcement Activities. Two standards
in combination should guide use by Federal law enforcement authorities of
race or ethnicity in law enforcement activities:-
In making routine or spontaneous law enforcement decisions, such as ordinary
traffic stops, Federal law enforcement officers may not use race or ethnicity
to any degree, except that officers may rely on race and ethnicity in a specific
suspect description. This prohibition applies even where the use of race or
ethnicity might otherwise be lawful. -
In conducting activities in connection with a specific investigation,
Federal law enforcement officers may consider race and ethnicity only to the
extent that there is trustworthy information relevant to the locality or time
frame that links persons of a particular race or ethnicity to an identified
criminal incident, scheme, or organization. This standard applies even where
the use of race or ethnicity might otherwise be lawful.
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National Security and Border Integrity. The above
standards do not affect current Federal policy with respect to law enforcement
activities and other efforts to defend and safeguard against threats to national
security or the integrity of the Nations borders, to which the following
applies:-
In investigating or preventing threats to national security or other catastrophic
events (including the performance of duties related to air transportation
security), or in enforcing laws protecting the integrity of the Nations borders,
Federal law enforcement officers may not consider race or ethnicity except
to the extent permitted by the Constitution and laws of the United States.
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