State Coordinator's Case Example (Welfare Fraud)

In early 2012, FinCEN conducted outreach to all of its state and local law enforcement partners, and asked for cases where FinCEN data played a useful role in their investigations. Below, in their own words, is an example of how FinCEN's stakeholders use FinCEN data. It has been edited only for confidentiality and privacy concerns.The following example is from a state coordinator's case. State coordinators are the primary contact points for local and state law enforcement agencies to obtain FinCEN records. Depending on the state, the coordinator could be the attorney general, state police, or the department of public safety. Frequently, the state coordinators are the primary contact point for a variety of resources that can benefit law enforcement agencies.

"A request for a FinCEN commercial database, CTR, and SAR request was received from a county prosecuting attorney's office regarding foreign nationals suspected of committing welfare fraud. Information gathered indicated that the foreign nationals had set up a cleaning business on Craigslist that involved wire transfers made through Western Union. It was reported that one of the suspects involved may have been in the United States illegally. The suspects were purported to have also engaged in welfare fraud in another state.

The information obtained from FinCEN was instrumental in the on-going investigation of the welfare fraud case and also resulted in the deportation of the illegal persons."