April 9, 2020
Since Congress passed a $2 trillion+ stimulus bill (The CARES Act) to provide financial relief to individuals and businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic, law enforcement agencies have been preparing to launch aggressive investigations into organizations and people suspected of fraud related to these federal benefits.
For example, the CARES Act provides direct payments to individuals and families depending on the size of the family and their income, and the IRS is charged with distributing these payments. The IRS’s Criminal Investigation Division has reportedly been preparing different types of alleged scams, such as those offering services to help people obtain their CARES Act payments sooner in exchange for a fee. IRS officials also intend to increase prosecutions based on alleged tax-related fraud and identity theft related to obtaining benefits under the CARES Act. Other prosecutions may stem from the loans and other financial benefits provided to businesses and independent contractors.
Click here to read an article from Law360 on the IRS investigations.