Am I the only one who believes the reward has very little to do with raising an actual reward and more to do with data collection? Sort of like Sills asking neighbors to fill out a questionnaire about the Dermonds but really collecting finger prints?!
I immediately thought it was very weird that they keep pushing the tax deductible angle. Sills said specifically that his office would provide the tax deduction paperwork and that it was the first time a reward had been set up like this. It got me to thinking, "Could the format allow LE or the IRS to gain more financial info than they are allowed otherwise?" Low and behold, look what I found on the FBI website about money laundering investigative tools:
While investigating money laundering and asset forfeiture cases, investigators have numerous sources of information at their disposal. Nine prove as particularly useful.36
1) Bank Secrecy Act reports: Financial institutions, including some casinos and merchants, must file currency transaction reports, foreign bank account reports, suspicious activity reports (SARs), and similar documents with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). These can help investigators connect laundered or concealed assets. SARs provide a tremendous source of intelligence, often actionable, and can help to proactively launch new investigations. They also assist investigations reactively by identifying accounts, no-show jobs, previously unknown associates, and many other valuable forms of information. SAR review teams exist around the country where multiple agencies examine the reports with prosecutors and choose viable targets. Financial institutions must provide the supporting documentation behind a SAR upon request from law enforcement. No subpoena is required.37
2) EGMONT: This network consists of the financial intelligence units of over 100 countries and permits law enforcement to request data in support of a significant money laundering or terrorist financing investigation. At a minimum, the information will include the requested countrys equivalent of SARs filed on the subjects of the request. No subpoena, prosecutor, or court involvement is needed, and law enforcement can make the request through FinCEN.
3) Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty: A formal request for records or enforcement action by a foreign country is made through DOJs Office of International Affairs.38
4) FEDWIRE: The New York Federal Reserve Bank can search names, addresses, and account numbers for any fund transfers done through its system. Often, this will reveal previously unknown beneficiaries and accounts.39
5) Clearing House Interbank Payment Systems (CHIPS): A subpoena can be served
to search the CHIPS network, used by financial institutions to process wire transfers.40
6) Mail covers: A request through the U.S. Postal Inspection Service will provide the information featured on the outside of envelopes. Often, this will identify financial institutions the subjects of the investigation deal with, as well as shell corporations, virtual offices, and phone companies.
Seized Assets from Operation Malicious Mortgage
7) Tax returns: Through a court order obtained by the U.S. Attorneys Office, the investigator can examine relevant tax returns, which often will yield the location of accounts, as well as front companies and shell corporations through which individuals launder money.41 Investigators or prosecutors working with a subject who is cooperating or proffering can request the individual to sign IRS Form 8821, which authorizes the release of the subjects tax records without the need for a court order.
8) Patriot Act 314(a) search: This likely is the most important money laundering tool available. Investigators can request FinCEN to post on a secure Web site the names of any individuals or entities who are subjects of a significant money laundering or terrorist financing investigation. All U.S. financial institutions then must advise the inquiring investigator of any accounts in the names of the requested subjects along with contact information for service of a subpoena. This method is far superior to serving a subpoena on the credit
bureaus because the investigator will learn of all domestic accounts and not just those linked to some form of credit. No subpoena, prosecutor, or court involvement is needed, and law enforcement can make the request through FinCEN.
9) Correspondent bank accounts: Virtually all foreign banks maintain correspondent accounts, also known as interbank accounts, in the United States to conduct American dollar transactions on behalf of their customers. These simply are accounts opened at U.S. banks in the name of a foreign financial institution. Even without jurisdiction over a foreign bank, investigators can serve a grand jury subpoena and receive records of any checks or wire transfers that cleared through the U.S. correspondent account on behalf of the foreign bank.42 By learning the senders or beneficiaries of these transactions, the investigator can determine the likely beneficial owners of the foreign account, as well as other foreign and domestic accounts involved in the money laundering cycle. And, where forfeitable funds are traced to a financial institution in a country that will not cooperate with the United States, DOJ can authorize the use of Section 981(k), a Patriot Act provision, which permits the seizure from a U.S. correspondent account of a sum equivalent to the amount of criminal proceeds laundered to the foreign bank. The U.S. correspondent bank relinquishes the money and provides the foreign bank with the seizure warrant so that the foreign bank can recoup the amount seized from its correspondent account by taking the same sum from its account holder. The foreign bank usually is not complicit in the money laundering but is subject to the seizure based on its role in holding the money launderers funds overseas. The Section 981(k) seizure authority can often be obtained within a few weeks.
Essentially, with American bank account numbers, they can then access foreign records they would otherwise not have permission to, amongst other things.
I think the reward account is just a tool to gain financial information from someone they might suspect, someone they think will donate...