IRS Criminal Investigation Annual Report — Fiscal Year 2025

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ANNUAL 
REPORT
2025

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
Table of Contents  
02 Message from the Chief 
03 2025 Snapshot 
04 IRS-CI’s FY25 Global Impact 
08 Significant Cases 
08 TD Bank Investigation 
Newark Field Office 
08 Global Export Control and Sanctions Evasion Scheme 
New York Field Office 
09 Bitfinex Hack 
Washington, D.C. Field Office 
09 North Korean Information Technology Scheme 
Phoenix Field Office 
10 Par Funding 
Philadelphia Field Office 
10 Bitwise Industries 
Oakland Field Office 
11 Feeding Our Future Fraud Scheme 
Chicago Field Office 
11 Credit Suisse Services AG 
International Tax & Financial Crimes Group 
(Washington, D.C.) 
12 Multi-State Drug Trafficking and Money Laundering 
Tampa Field Office 
12 COVID-19 Pandemic Fraud Scheme 
Los Angeles Field Office 
13 Syndicated Conservation Easements 
Charlotte Field Office 
14 Field Office Map 
16 Appendix 
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20 IRS-CI Organization Chart 
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Table of Contents • 2025 Snapshot • Field Office Map • Appendix 
1 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
IRS-CI ANNUAL REPORT 2025
Message from the Chief  
Each fiscal year, this report highlights not only our 
most significant cases and the resulting statistics, 
but also the dedication, sacrifice and professionalism 
of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) 
workforce. Our special agents and professional 
staff continue to demonstrate resilience, integrity 
and innovation as financial crimes grow more 
complex and demanding. None of our achievements 
as an agency would be possible without the 
people who work here at IRS-CI, and I am deeply 
grateful for their commitment to our mission. 
In fiscal year 2025 (FY25), IRS-CI held some of 
the most egregious tax criminals accountable, 
dismantled schemes that targeted the vulnerable 
and defrauded government programs, applied 
its financial expertise to disrupt drug traffickers, 
and safeguarded our nation’s national security 
by investigating sanctions evasion and illegal 
hiring schemes. Advanced data analytics, digital 
tools, and intelligence-sharing have become more 
integral than ever in uncovering patterns and 
anomalies indicative of criminal activity. As criminals 
become more sophisticated, our investigative 
techniques continue to evolve to keep pace. 
Collaboration has been a cornerstone of our success. 
Initiatives such as CI-FIRST (Feedback in Response 
to Strategic Threats) strengthened our partnerships 
with financial institutions, enhancing communication 
and modernizing legal processes. This partnership 
redefines how we detect, disrupt and dismantle 
criminal networks. Internationally, our work with the 
Joint Chiefs of Global Tax Enforcement (J5) yielded 
tangible results, including cross-border investigations 
and intelligence-sharing that led to successful 
prosecutions. Through the J5, we published a series 
of reports highlighting fraud trends and typologies 
and saw our intelligence-sharing result in the guilty 
plea of a government contractor for evading millions 
of dollars in U.S. taxes and the conviction of the 
head of a cryptocurrency investment scheme for 
defrauding investors of millions. Domestically, 
our partnerships through the newly established 
Homeland Security Task Forces have reinforced our 
ability to support whole-of-government efforts that 
protect our communities and uphold the rule of law. 
Starting in August, our special agents and 
professional staff began supporting Operation 
Safe and Beautiful in Washington, D.C., and in 
September, we began assisting the Restoring Law 
and Order in Memphis taskforce. These efforts bring 
together special agents from across the country 
to support local and federal law enforcement 
initiatives. While such missions extend beyond 
traditional tax enforcement, they demonstrate 
the adaptability of our agents and the broad value 
we bring to interagency efforts. These initiatives, 
though resource-intensive, underscore the trust 
placed in IRS-CI to deliver results wherever financial 
crimes intersect with broader national priorities. 
As we look forward, IRS-CI remains focused 
on combating threats to our tax and financial 
systems and protecting U.S. taxpayers. Our 
mission has not wavered, and I am confident 
that our team will continue to deliver results 
Sincerely, 
and meet the challenges of tomorrow. 
Guy Ficco 
Chief, IRS Criminal Investigation 
2025 Snapshot  
Direct Investigative Time Spent 
$4.49B 
TAX FRAUD IDENTIFIED 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Investigation Sources 
$6.10B 
OTHER IDENTIFIED 
FINANCIAL CRIMES 
1445 
WARRANTS EXECUTED 
2043 
REFERRED FOR 
PROSECUTION 
89% 
CONVICTION RATE 
1611 
CONVICTIONS 
 
 
 
 
  
 
Staffing* 
2.35 
PETABYTES OF 
DIGITAL DATA 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
   
 
 
 
 
 
   
  
 
*Staffing levels are reported by fiscal year and reflect an actual count of employees based on employee master database as of PP19,  
3 
and are adjusted for DRP/VERA separations.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
2 

NON-TAX CRIMES                          
IRS-CI ANNUAL REPORT 2025
IRS-CI’s FY25 Global Impact (1/2)  
IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), the law 
enforcement arm of the IRS, is the only federal 
agency with the authority to investigate potential 
criminal violations of the Internal Revenue Code. 
While the enforcement of U.S. tax laws remains 
our core priority, IRS-CI plays a critical role in 
satisfying broader national law enforcement 
priorities, including protecting national security and 
combating narcotics trafficking, terrorist financing, 
sanction violations, and cybercrimes. As a result of 
IRS-CI investigations, criminals may receive prison 
sentences for threatening America’s financial and 
physical wellbeing. IRS-CI’s enforcement efforts 
deter financial crimes by reinforcing trust in the U.S. 
financial system and strengthening the economy. 
Founded in 1919 as the Intelligence Unit of the 
Department of Revenue, led by Chief Elmer Irey, 
the agency began with just six special agents. 
Today, IRS-CI consists of roughly 2,000 special 
agents who are sworn federal law enforcement 
officers that investigate the most complex criminal 
Attaché Posts Abroad 
BRANCH A: 
BRANCH B: 
Ottawa 
Mexico City 
London 
Panama City 
The Hague 
The Bahamas 
Frankfurt 
Bogota 
Dubai 
Barbados 
Canberra 
Singapore 
Sydney 
Hong Kong 
tax cases and a myriad of financial crimes. IRS-CI 
special agents are located in all 50 states, as well 
as Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. 
IRS-CI also maintains 14 attaché posts abroad 
with a staff of approximately 30 attachés, deputy 
attachés, and investigative support staff. 
IRS-CI also employs more than 1,000 professional 
staff who provide essential expertise and support 
to the agency’s mission. These professionals 
analyze intelligence, conduct research, manage 
operations and deliver scientific and digital 
forensic analyses. Together, our special agents 
and professional staff continue to safeguard the 
integrity of our nation’s tax and financial system. 
In FY25, IRS-CI identified almost $4.5 billion in 
tax fraud and over $6 billion in fraud linked to 
other financial crimes. We referred 2,043 cases 
for prosecution, saw 1,611 convictions, and had a 
conviction rate of 89%, one of the highest in federal 
law enforcement. 
While FY25 was a year that required our professionals 
across the agency to adapt to shifting priorities, we 
saw a significant increase in the amount of tax fraud 
identified — more than double the amount uncovered 
in FY24. Additionally, there was a 25% increase in 
the number of warrants executed throughout the 
year, along with an almost 14% rise in cases referred 
for prosecution. These accomplishments reflect our 
unwavering dedication to the mission of protecting 
the integrity of the tax system and ensuring fairness 
for all taxpayers. 
Expanding Federal Law 
Enforcement Partnerships 
In FY25, IRS Criminal Investigation strengthened  
and expanded its federal law enforcement 
partnerships to address emerging national threats. 
Through newly established Homeland Security Task 
Forces, support to U.S. Immigration and Customs 
Enforcement for immigration enforcement, and 
participation in Operation Safe and Beautiful in 
Washington, D.C., and Restoring Law and Order in 
Memphis, IRS-CI deployed special agents nationwide 
to assist in combating violent crime, transnational 
organizations, and financial exploitation. These 
collaborations showcase the adaptability and 
expertise of IRS-CI’s workforce in applying financial 
intelligence to complex, multi-agency operations. 
While extending beyond traditional tax enforcement, 
these efforts reinforce IRS-CI’s vital role in protecting 
the nation’s financial and public safety interests. 
Narcotics and National Security 
IRS-CI is well-known for solving some of the most 
complex financial crimes in our country. In 1931, 
the investigation of Alfonse “Al” Capone led to his 
indictment on federal income tax evasion. He was 
sentenced to 11 years in prison and ordered to 
pay a $50,000 fine and restitution of $215,000. 
Since then, IRS-CI has continued to play a crucial 
role in making the United States safer. Our agents 
identify transnational criminal organizations 
by targeting associated money trails, often 
linking the criminal organizations to crimes 
like narcotics trafficking, terrorist financing, 
illegal firearms distribution, and other fraud. 
In FY25, and in accordance with the Executive 
Order Protecting the American People Against 
Invasion, the National Security Council directed 
the creation of Homeland Security Task Forces 
(HSTF). Co-led by Homeland Security Investigations 
and the FBI, HSTFs target criminal cartels, foreign 
gangs, and transnational criminal organizations 
throughout the United States. They investigate 
drug trafficking, money laundering, weapons 
trafficking, human trafficking, alien smuggling, 
homicide, extortion, kidnapping, and weapons 
1412  
INVESTIGATIONS 
INITIATED 
Money Laundering 
2313 
SEIZURES 
1153 
994 
INVESTIGATIONS 
FORFEITURES 
INITIATED 
trafficking. IRS-CI is a critical partner in this 
effort, and roughly 190 of our special agents 
sit on these taskforces across the country. 
In FY25, IRS-CI special agents spent 
approximately 23.7% of their time investigating 
non-tax violations, initiated 1,412 cases, and 
referred 1,209 individuals for prosecution to the 
Department of Justice for non-tax violations. 
In April 2025, Behrouz Parsarad, an Iranian national, 
was charged for his role in operating a dark web 
marketplace that served as a hub for illegal drugs 
and criminal cyber services, including stolen financial 
information, fraudulent identification documents, 
counterfeit currencies, and computer malware. 
According to the indictment, Parsarad launched 
Nemesis Market in March 2021. At its peak, the 
marketplace had over 150,000 users worldwide. 
Parsarad was charged with conspiracy to traffic 
drugs and money laundering conspiracy. In March 
2025, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of 
Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced sanctions 
against Parsarad for his role as the administrator of 
Nemesis Market. According to OFAC, Nemesis Market 
facilitated the sale of nearly $30 million worth of 
drugs between 2021 and 2024. 
1209 
1024 
PROSECUTIONS 
DEFENDANTS 
RECOMMENDED 
SENTENCED 
5 
4 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
IRS-CI ANNUAL REPORT 2025
IRS-CI’s FY25 Global Impact (2/2)  
Our efforts to combat terrorism and protect our 
national security also resulted in Christina Chapman, 
an Arizona woman, being sentenced to 8½ years 
in prison. She helped Information Technology (IT) 
workers located in North Korea steal the identities of 
U.S. nationals so they could apply for remote IT jobs 
and transmit false documents to the Department of 
Homeland Security. The scheme generated more than 
$17 million in illicit revenue for Chapman and North 
Korea. IRS-CI also participated in the investigation 
of Quanzhong An, who was an illegal agent for the 
People’s Republic of China and led a harassment 
campaign against a U.S. resident and his family in an 
attempt to coerce the U.S. resident to return to China. 
IRS-CI often plays a critical role in combatting drug 
trafficking due to our ability to trace financial records. 
In FY25, our team secured 447 convictions related 
to narcotics violations. In December 2024, Haiping 
Pan, a Chinese national, was sentenced to a decade 
in prison for laundering $62 million in illegal drug 
proceeds on behalf of traffickers in Mexico. IRS-CI 
assisted in an investigation where 11 defendants 
were sentenced to a combined 123 years in prison 
for operating a cartel-linked drug trafficking ring that 
smuggled nearly 400 pounds of methamphetamine 
and over 7 kilograms of fentanyl into the Midwest. 
IRS-CI’s Detroit Field Office also assisted in a 
case where the judge, at sentencing, referred to 
the defendant, Jason Demyers, as a “kingpin” and 
sentenced him to 27 years in prison for his leadership 
of the multistate drug trafficking conspiracy. 
National Law Enforcement Priorities 
In May 2025, IRS-CI started providing support to 
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) 
with immigration enforcement efforts. IRS-CI 
dedicated special agents to assist ICE in facilitating 
arrest, detention, and deportation efforts, focusing 
TAX CRIMES 
on identifying transnational gang members and 
affiliates and locating children separated from 
their families after illegally entering the U.S. 
As the only federal law enforcement 
agency with jurisdiction over income 
tax violations, IRS-CI is committed to 
investigating tax crimes related to 
fraudulent refund claims, legal and 
illegal income source tax evasion, 
off-the-books payroll operation, and the owners 
of several Florida labor-staffing companies 
were sentenced for tax fraud, immigration 
violations, and laundering illicit proceeds. 
834 
PROSECUTIONS 
RECOMMENDED 
1380 
INVESTIGATIONS 
INITIATED 
589 
DEFENDANTS 
SENTENCED 
6 
7 
and emerging trends in financial exploitation including 
employment tax violations. Our investigative priorities 
include rooting out fraud in government contracts, 
combating false claims to the IRS, and targeting 
schemes that prey on vulnerable individuals and 
compromise their financial security. Our Advanced 
Analytics and Innovation team continues to stay 
at the forefront of identifying new schemes and 
uncovering the methodology these criminals use to 
defraud their victims. We use the latest technology to 
refine our investigative approach to improve scheme 
detection and improve the efficiency of our data 
analytics and investigations. 
One area where these investigative priorities and 
data-driven strategies have proven especially 
effective is in addressing employment tax fraud and 
payroll schemes that exploit vulnerable workers and 
undermine the tax system. Employers are required 
to deduct employment taxes from employees’ 
wages and pay a portion of these taxes to the U.S. 
government. IRS-CI investigates large-scale payroll 
and worksite fraud schemes nationwide. A lot of 
these cases involve labor intensive industries, 
such as construction, agriculture, and hospitality. 
In certain instances, staffing companies or “labor 
brokers” pay workers off the books to evade 
taxes and hide unauthorized employment. 
Manuel Domingos Pita, a Florida businessman, 
was sentenced to 48 months in prison and 
ordered to pay $55 million in restitution for 
employing migrant laborers illegally, evading 
payroll taxes, and causing a worker’s death. In 
Oregon, David Katz was sentenced to four years 
in prison and ordered to repay nearly $45 million 
for a $177 million payroll tax evasion scheme. 
Katz conspired with others in the construction 
industry to facilitate “under-the-table” payments 
to construction workers. Four Honduran 
nationals were indicted in Florida for running an 
IRS-CI continues to prioritize cybercrime 
investigations, recognizing that modern financial 
crimes increasingly rely on the internet, computer 
networks, and digital communication to expand their 
reach and complexity. These cases are often among 
the agency’s largest, often resulting in lengthy prison 
terms, significant forfeitures, and seizures. In FY25 
alone, IRS-CI saw 54 convictions in cyber-related 
investigations with an average sentencing of 63 
months incarceration. In FY25, Oluwole Adegboruwa 
was sentenced to 30 years in prison for operating 
a multimillion-dollar dark web operation that 
distributed more than 300,000 oxycodone pills and 
laundered nearly $9.1 million in proceeds. Roman 
Sterlingov, a dual Russian-Swedish national, earned 
himself a 12½ year prison sentence for operating the 
darknet cryptocurrency mixer Bitcoin Fog. And Ilya 
Lichtenstein, who orchestrated a massive hack of the 
cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex and then laundered 
nearly 120,000 stolen bitcoin, was sentenced to 
five years in prison. To meet the global nature of 
these crimes, IRS-CI used advanced analytics to 
identify data trends and staffing resources, including 
cybercrime units in Los Angeles and Washington, 
D.C., specialized attachés assigned to international 
posts, and partnerships around the world. 
In March 2025, IRS-CI announced CI-FIRST 
(Feedback In Response to Strategic Threats), the 
agency’s flagship initiative to modernize the way 
IRS-CI works with financial institutions. CI-FIRST 
addresses challenges in Bank Secrecy Act reporting 
by providing feedback to help banks understand what 
is most useful to investigators, while enhancing the 
speed and precision with which agents can identify, 
disrupt, and prosecute financial crime. The Optimizing 
Financial Records Requests (OFRR) initiative 
streamlines and standardizes how law enforcement 
agencies request and how financial institutions 
respond to legal order and subpoena requests. 
IRS-CI hosted more than a dozen global financial 
institutions at its first executive forum in 
Washington, D.C. in August 2025, and hundreds 
of financial industry, regulatory agency, and 
law enforcement representatives attended 
regional forums in Tampa, Florida, and Los 
Angeles, California, in September 2025. 
IRS-CI prioritizes financial fraud schemes targeting 
U.S. citizens and government programs. In FY25 we 
identified over $10.6 billion in financial fraud including 
tax and non-tax offenses. We continue to see lengthy 
prison sentences for fraud in connection with the 
COVID-19 pandemic. In a landmark sentence, Shafii 
Farah, one of the masterminds behind a COVID-19 
fraud scheme, was sentenced to 28 years in prison 
for defrauding American taxpayers of over $250 
million. Thus far, 73 defendants have been indicted 
for their participation in this scheme. From the start 
of the pandemic through 9/30/25, IRS-CI initiated 
588 investigations involving more than $5.6 billion of 
potentially fraudulent ERCs related to tax years 2020, 
2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024. Of these investigations, 
108 have resulted in federal charges to date. 
This year, our financial fraud investigations revealed 
recurring themes of long-running deception, abuse 
of trust, and massive financial harm to communities. 
Our investigators uncovered a $24.5 million Ponzi 
scheme, sweeping identity-theft frauds, and secured 
the conviction of former speaker of the Illinois 
House of Representatives, Michael Madigan, who 
was sentenced to seven years for using his official 
position for personal benefit. Whether siphoning 
government benefits, exploiting community ties, 
or misusing political power, each case underscores 
how fraud erodes confidence in institutions, 
communities, and public programs, reinforcing 
why IRS-CI remains central to protecting the 
integrity of the financial system. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
IRS-CI ANNUAL REPORT 2025
Significant Cases (1/3)  
TD Bank Investigation 
Newark Field Office 
For almost a decade, TD Bank NA and its parent 
company, TD Bank US Holding Company, the 10th 
largest bank in the United States, had long-term, 
pervasive, and systemic deficiencies in its U.S. 
anti-money laundering (AML) policies, procedures, 
and controls but failed to take appropriate remedial 
action. Instead, senior executives at TD Bank 
enforced a budget mandate, referred to internally 
as a “flat cost paradigm,” requiring that TD Bank’s 
budget not increase year-over-year, despite its 
profits and risk profile increasing significantly over 
the same period. Although TD Bank maintained 
elements of an AML program that appeared 
adequate on paper, fundamental, widespread 
flaws in its AML program made TD Bank an “easy 
target” for perpetrators of financial crime. 
TD Bank’s federal regulators and their own internal 
audit staff repeatedly identified concerns about 
its transaction monitoring program, a key element 
of an effective AML program, which is necessary 
to detect and report suspicious activities and 
financial transactions. TD Bank intentionally did 
not automatically monitor all domestic automated 
clearinghouse transactions (ACH), most check 
activity, and numerous other transaction types, 
resulting in 92% of their total transaction volume 
going unmonitored from January 2018 through 
April 2024. This amounted to approximately 
$18.3 trillion of unmonitored transaction activity. 
Employees of TD Bank described the institution as 
a “convenient” target for criminals, which allowed 
hundreds of millions of dollars to pass through 
the bank. The investigation revealed at least three 
distinct money laundering networks that collectively 
transferred more than $670 million through TD Bank 
accounts between 2019 and 2023. The Justice 
Department has charged over two dozen individuals 
across these schemes, including two bank insiders. 
TD Bank’s plea agreement requires continued 
cooperation in ongoing investigations of 
individuals. In November 2024, TD Bank 
was ordered to forfeit over $452 million 
and to pay a criminal fine of $1.4 billion. 
Global Export Control and  
Sanctions Evasion Scheme  
New York Field Office 
From 2019 through 2022, Vadim Yermolenko, 
a dual U.S. and Russian national residing in 
New Jersey, played a key role in a transnational 
procurement and money laundering network that 
illegally acquired U.S.-made dual-use electronics 
and military-grade ammunition intended for 
Russian military and intelligence entities. 
Yermolenko was affiliated with Serniya Engineering 
(Serniya) and Sertal LLC (Sertal), two Moscow-based 
procurement companies that operated a network 
of shell companies and bank accounts throughout 
the world, including in the United States. These 
companies concealed involvement of the Russian 
government and end-users of highly sensitive 
electronic components, some which are used 
in the development of nuclear weapons or 
other military applications. Serniya, Sertal, and 
several individuals and companies involved in 
the scheme were placed on the Office of Foreign 
Assets Control’s (OFAC) Specially Designated 
Nationals List in February 2022, which allows 
the U.S. to place sanctions on these entities. 
Yermolenko helped set up shell companies and U.S. 
bank accounts to conceal the Russian government’s 
involvement, funneling over $12 million through 
accounts he controlled. Yermolenko failed to report 
the funds to the IRS. These funds were used in 
part to purchase sensitive radar equipment for 
surveillance, military research, and development. 
Yermolenko pleaded guilty to conspiracy to violate 
the Export Control Reform Act, bank fraud conspiracy, 
and conspiracy to defraud the United States. He 
was sentenced to 30 months in prison and ordered 
to pay a forfeiture money judgment of $75,547. 
Bitfinex Hack 
Washington, D.C. Field Office 
In 2016, Ilya Lichtenstein hacked into Bitfinex, a 
global cryptocurrency exchange, using advanced 
hacking tools and techniques. Once inside the 
network, Lichtenstein fraudulently authorized more 
than 2,000 transactions transferring 119,754 bitcoin 
from Bitfinex to a cryptocurrency wallet in his control. 
Lichtenstein then took steps to cover his tracks by 
deleting access credentials and other log files from 
Bitfinex’s network that could have revealed his 
conduct to law enforcement. Following the hack, 
Lichtenstein enlisted the help of his wife, Heather 
Morgan, in laundering the stolen funds. At the time 
of the hack, the bitcoin was valued at $71 million. 
Lichtenstein, at times with Morgan’s assistance, 
employed numerous sophisticated laundering 
techniques that ranged from using fictitious 
identities to set up online accounts to utilizing 
computer programs to automate transactions to 
converting bitcoin to other forms of cryptocurrency 
in a practice known as chain hopping. He then 
used U.S.-based business accounts to legitimize 
his and Morgan’s banking activity and exchanged 
a portion of the stolen funds for gold coins. 
Lichtenstein and Morgan both pleaded guilty. 
Lichtenstein was sentenced to five years in 
prison, and Morgan was sentenced to 18 months. 
Several billion dollars of illicit proceeds have also 
been recovered through seizure and forfeiture 
due to the appreciation of the stolen funds. 
North Korean Information 
Technology Scheme 
Phoenix Field Office 
From 2020 through 2023, Christina Chapman 
conspired with and assisted North Korean IT workers 
in a scheme that generated more than $17 million 
in illicit revenue for herself and North Korea. Using 
stolen and purchased identities of U.S. nationals, 
North Korean workers applied for remote IT jobs 
at over 300 U.S. companies, including Fortune 
500 corporations, major television networks, 
American car makers, and tech companies. 
Chapman operated a “laptop farm,” where she 
received and hosted computers from U.S. companies 
at her home, leading the companies to believe these 
workers were in the United States. Chapman also 
shipped 49 laptops and other devices supplied by U.S. 
companies to locations overseas, including multiple 
shipments to a city in China near North Korea. 
Much of the $17.1 million was falsely reported as 
wages to the IRS and Social Security Administration 
in the names of U.S. individuals whose identities 
had been stolen or borrowed. Chapman pleaded 
guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, 
aggravated identity theft, and conspiracy to 
launder monetary instruments. She was sentenced 
to 102 months in prison and ordered to forfeit 
$284,555.92 that she planned to pay to the North 
Koreans and pay a judgement of $176,850. 
CYBERCRIMES
54 
CONVICTIONS 
$149M 
ASSETS SEIZED 
63 Mos 
AVERAGE SENTENCING 
9 
8 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
 
 
 
 
  
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
IRS-CI ANNUAL REPORT 2025
Significant Cases (2/3)  
Par Funding 
Philadelphia Field Office 
For almost a decade, Joseph LaForte, CEO of Complete 
Business Solutions Group Inc., dba Par Funding (“Par 
Funding”), orchestrated a large-scale fraud totaling 
approximately $404 million. LaForte marketed Par 
Funding as a high-yield lending opportunity, when 
it actually operated as a criminal enterprise. As the 
undisputed leader of the enterprise, he misled investors 
about the company’s financial performance, concealed 
his prior felony convictions, and directed aggressive and 
sometimes violent collection tactics against borrowers. 
LaForte and his co-conspirators, one of which was 
his brother, James LaForte, defrauded investors by 
providing false or misleading information about the 
company’s performance, insurance coverage, and 
other important facts. Par Funding’s principal means of 
generating income was to advance money to businesses 
(known as merchant cash advance or MCA customers) 
that needed short-term financing at high rates of 
return. They then engaged in threats of violence and 
extortion to collect overdue payments. Additionally, 
they lied about the financial position of the company. 
Joseph LaForte caused Par Funding to pay him 
and his wife more than $120 million in fraudulent 
proceeds, which he used to purchase homes, vacation 
properties, vehicles, artwork, jewelry, dozens of 
investment properties, a boat, and a private jet. He 
committed a variety of tax crimes related to these 
fraudulent proceeds, including conspiracy to defraud 
the IRS and filing false income tax and employment 
tax returns. His tax crimes resulted in more than 
$8 million in losses to the IRS and $1.6 million in 
losses to the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue. 
LaForte was convicted in numerous federal and 
state charges including RICO conspiracy, securities 
fraud, tax fraud, and obstruction of justice. He was 
sentenced to 186 months in prison and three years 
of supervised release, including one year of house 
arrest. LaForte was also ordered to pay restitution 
of $314 million and a $120 million money 
forfeiture judgment, and he was ordered 
to forfeit various assets, including a 
private jet and an investment account 
totaling approximately $20 million. 
Bitwise Industries  
Oakland Field Office 
From 2022 through May of 2023, founders Jake 
Soberal and Irma Olguin Jr. engaged in a scheme 
to defraud investors of their company, Bitwise 
Industries. At the time, Bitwise was the largest 
startup company from California’s Central Valley. 
The company’s objective was to use technology 
to create jobs for underserved groups of people 
and to revitalize blighted urban areas, all while 
demonstrating profitability to investors. However, 
Soberal and Olguin fabricated investor materials, 
falsified audit reports, altered bank statements, 
and forged documents to portray Bitwise as 
profitable, when the company actually had 
minimal revenue and was running out of funds. 
In a February 2022 presentation and a July 2022 
prospectus, Olguin and Soberal represented to 
investors that Bitwise’s cash balance was over 
$44 million, and their revenue was more than 
$58 million, when Bitwise had less than $12 
million in cash, and the company’s revenue was 
non-existent. They made similar representations 
in March 2023, when they overstated their cash 
balance by $72 million and claimed $143 million 
in revenues, while they were negligible. 
Their deception caused nearly 1,000 employees 
and contractors to abruptly lose their jobs when 
the company collapsed in May 2023. Their actions 
had widespread economic and personal fallout, 
prompting serious sentencing enhancements due 
to their abuse of trust, professional status, and 
calculated efforts to conceal the fraud. Soberal 
and Olguin were convicted for conspiracy to commit 
wire fraud and wire fraud, sentenced to 11 and 
9 years in prison, respectively, and were ordered 
to pay restitution to victims of over $114 million. 
Feeding Our Future Fraud Scheme 
Chicago Field Office 
From April 2020 to January 2022, Abdiaziz Shafii 
Farah, a Minnesota businessman, played a leading 
role in a COVID-19 fraud scheme totaling over 
$300 million, one of the largest ever. Farah used 
his company, Empire Cuisine & Market, to enroll in 
the federal Child Nutrition Program (CHIP) during 
the COVID-19 pandemic, and he created over 30 
sham distribution sites. Farah submitted falsified 
rosters and invoices to claim over 18 million meals 
for underprivileged children that were never served. 
He ran a “pay-to-play” kickback system, bribing 
program employees to approve and sustain the 
scheme. He used the proceeds of this scheme to 
purchase luxury real estate, vehicles, jewelry, and 
overseas investments. He personally pocketed over 
$8 million from the scheme. Farah was convicted 
of conspiracy charges, false statements, bribery-
related charges, and 11 counts of money laundering. 
He was sentenced to 28 years in prison followed 
by three years of supervised release, and he was 
ordered to pay restitution of $47.92 million. 
At least 75 individuals have been charged in 
connection with this scheme. Mukhtar Mohamed 
Shariff, CEO of Afrique Hospitality Group, engaged in 
similar conduct and was sentenced to 210 months in 
prison followed by three years of supervised release. 
He was also ordered to pay almost $50 million in 
restitution. Sharon Denise Ross was sentenced to 
43 months in prison and ordered to pay $2.4 million 
in restitution for claiming to have served thousands of 
children each day at the House of Refuge Twin Cities, 
a St. Paul based non-profit. 
Credit Suisse Services AG 
International Tax & Financial Crimes Group
(Washington, D.C.) 
Credit Suisse Services AG, (Credit Suisse) pleaded 
guilty for conspiring to help U.S. taxpayers hide more 
than $4 billion in at least 475 offshore accounts 
from the IRS. Between January 2010 and July 
2021, Credit Suisse, who served high-net-worth 
clients globally, colluded with U.S. clients and 
employees to conceal asset ownership and 
income held at the bank. This enabled clients to 
evade U.S. tax obligations by opening undeclared 
offshore accounts, using private banking services 
to obscure assets from the IRS, and failing to file 
required Reports of Foreign Bank and Financial 
Accounts (FBARs). Bankers knowingly falsified 
records—including fictitious donation paperwork— 
and managed over $1 billion in undocumented 
accounts. This misconduct was in violation of a 
May 2014 plea agreement with the United States. 
Credit Suisse also entered into a non-prosecution 
agreement (NPA) concerning its Singapore 
operations, where from 2014 to June 2023, it 
maintained undeclared U.S.-related accounts with 
assets exceeding $2 billion and failed to identify 
U.S. indicia or the true beneficial owners. The bank 
agreed to cooperate fully with DOJ investigations and 
committed to paying substantial monetary penalties. 
As part of the resolution, the bank agreed to pay 
approximately $510.6 million in total penalties, 
restitution, forfeiture, and fines. UBS—Credit 
Suisse’s parent since its 2023 acquisition—is 
required under the agreement to fully cooperate 
with ongoing investigations and disclose 
information regarding U.S.-related accounts. 
ASSET FORFEITURES
* Value at time of seizure 
$816M* 
SEIZURES 
$508M 
FORFEITURES 
$99M 
ASSET RECOVERY 
11 
10 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
IRS-CI ANNUAL REPORT 2025
Significant Cases (3/3)  
Multi-State Drug Trafficking 
and Money Laundering 
Tampa Field Office 
From 2017 through 2023, a violent drug trafficking 
organization led by Dudzinski Edwinn Poole, 
known as “Zink,” distributed massive quantities of 
methamphetamine and fentanyl across multiple 
states, including Florida, Georgia, and Ohio. The 
organization relied on a network of couriers, 
stash houses, and mailed packages to move 
narcotics. They then laundered their proceeds, 
including through an entertainment business that 
disguised illicit revenue as legitimate income. The 
investigation uncovered a wide-reaching conspiracy 
involving suppliers, distributors, couriers, and 
financial operatives who played roles in sustaining 
the drug pipeline and concealing profits. 
Investigators seized more than 250 pounds of 
methamphetamine and fentanyl, along with firearms, 
vehicles, jewelry, and residences purchased with 
the drug proceeds. Leaders used commercial flights 
and the mail to transport drugs, while laundering 
millions of dollars through shell operations and cash 
couriers. Evidence revealed that members of the 
organization used violence, threats, and intimidation 
to maintain control of their operation and profits. 
Seventeen defendants were convicted, either 
through guilty pleas or jury trials. Sentences 
varied depending on the defendant’s role: 
Michael Chester was sentenced to life in prison, 
reflecting his leadership in the conspiracy, while 
Poole received 21 years and 10 months. Several 
others received terms ranging from six years to 
more than 30 years. The wide range of sentences 
highlights the differing levels of responsibility 
within the organization, from masterminds and 
major distributors to couriers and facilitators. 
COVID-19 Pandemic Fraud Scheme  
Los Angeles Field Office 
From June 2020 through December 2021, Casie 
Hynes engaged in a wide-ranging fraud scheme 
exploiting COVID-19 relief programs and pandemic 
tax credits. Hynes submitted over 80 fraudulent 
loan applications through the Paycheck Protection 
Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loan 
(EIDL) program, seeking more than $3.1 million in 
relief funds. She fabricated the number of employees, 
payroll amounts, and supporting tax and bank 
records, and she used the personal information and 
signatures of others without authorization. Through 
this scheme, she successfully obtained approximately 
$2.25 million in fraudulent loan proceeds. 
In addition, between May 2021 and April 2022, 
Hynes submitted a dozen fraudulent tax filings 
claiming nearly $1.3 million in pandemic-related 
tax credits, including the Employee Retention Credit 
and Paid Sick and Family Leave Credits. These 
filings were submitted on behalf of companies she 
controlled, such as Nasty Womxn Project LLC, She 
Suite Ventures, and Casie Hynes Consulting, and 
were based on fictitious wages and employees. 
Although those tax credit claims were denied, 
the attempt underscored her use of multiple 
pandemic relief programs to maximize illicit gain. 
Hynes was convicted of wire fraud and presenting 
false claims to the United States. She was 
sentenced to 60 months in prison and ordered 
to pay more than $2.37 million in restitution. 
Syndicated Conservation Easements 
Charlotte Field Office 
IRS-CI continues to investigate individuals associated 
with an abusive tax scheme tied to syndicated 
conservation easement transactions. From 2014 
through at least 2019, Victor Smith, CPA, a founding 
partner of an Atlanta-based accounting firm, 
promoted and sold tax deductions to his wealthy 
clients in illegal syndicated conservation easement 
tax shelters, which were organized and created 
by co-defendants Jack Fisher, James Sinnott, 
and others. Smith and his firm sold approximately 
$14 million in false tax deductions to their clients, 
causing a tax loss to the IRS of about $4.8 million. 
Smith earned $491,400 in commissions. 
William Tomasello, a CPA at another accounting 
firm, also promoted and sold units to his wealthy 
clients causing a tax loss of about $2.3 million. He 
earned approximately $525,072 in commissions. 
Smith and Tomasello both knew that, contrary to 
law, these tax shelters lacked economic substance 
and that their wealthy clients participated in these 
sham investments only to obtain a tax deduction. 
For example, a client who purchased units in a 
partnership had to vote ostensibly on what to 
do with the partnership’s land. However, Smith 
and Tomasello knew that the vote held by the 
partnerships each year was just for optics, and 
the land invariably would be donated largely as 
a conservation easement. Smith and Tomasello 
also knowingly instructed and caused their clients 
to falsely backdate documents like subscription 
agreements and checks related to the illegal tax 
shelters. In October 2024, they were each sentenced 
to 20 months in prison for their role in the scheme. 
In FY25, eight defendants were convicted of 
criminal conduct related to this scheme, which was 
orchestrated by Fisher and Sinnott. Fisher and Sinnott 
were convicted after trial and sentenced in 2024. Other 
defendants include appraiser Walter Douglas “Terry” 
Roberts, Ralph Anderson, and Vui Bui, an attorney 
and partner at Sinnott & Co. Bui was sentenced to 
16 months in prison for his role in this scheme. 
12 
13 

IRS-CI ANNUAL REPORT 2025
Field Office Map 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
15 
14 

 
 
 
  
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
  
IRS-CI ANNUAL REPORT 2025
Appendix (1/2)  
This appendix includes investigation data appearing in the annual report 
as well as extended information regarding incarceration rates. 
Corporate Fraud 
2025 
2024 
2023 
Investigations
Initiated
 37 
23 
34 
Prosecution 
Recommendations
 19 
16 
31 
Informations/
Indictments
 23 
14 
26 
Sentenced
 26 
22 
19 
Incarceration  
Rate 
50% 
77% 
79%  
Average Months
to Serve 
25 
44 
22 
Employment Tax 
2025 
2024 
2023 
Investigations
Initiated
 205 
209 
221 
Prosecution 
Recommendations
 142 
113 
115 
Informations/
Indictments
 96 
106 
128 
Sentenced
 121 
104 
103 
Incarceration  
Rate 
82% 
72% 
84%  
Average Months
to Serve 
22 
17 
20 
Financial Institution Fraud 
2025 
2024 
2023 
Investigations
Initiated
 52 
32 
28 
Prosecution 
Recommendations
 29 
21 
25 
Informations/
Indictments
 28 
27 
20 
Sentenced
 21 
30 
16 
Incarceration  
Rate 
76% 
47% 
81%  
Average Months
to Serve 
40 
18 
45 
Healthcare Fraud 
2025 
2024 
2023 
Investigations
Initiated
 64 
60 
44 
Prosecution 
Recommendations
 33 
36 
36 
Informations/
Indictments
 34 
34 
32 
Sentenced
 59 
58 
56 
Incarceration  
Rate 
58% 
62% 
80%  
Average Months
to Serve 
23 
25 
39 
FY Combined Results 
2025 
2024 
2023 
Investigations
Initiated
 2792 
2667 
2676 
Prosecution 
Recommendations
 2043 
1794 
1838 
Informations/
Indictments
 1726 
1669 
1676 
Sentenced
 1613 
1582 
1479 
Incarceration  
Rate 
76% 
76% 
79%  
Average Months
to Serve 
49 
44 
48 
Abusive Return Preparer Program 
2025 
2024 
2023 
Investigations
Initiated
 206 
190 
201 
Prosecution 
Recommendations
 169 
91 
108 
Informations/
Indictments
 92 
83 
92 
Sentenced
 83 
84 
134 
Incarceration  
Rate 
77% 
80% 
72%  
Average Months
to Serve 
27 
20 
23 
Abusive Tax Schemes 
2025 
2024 
2023 
Investigations
Initiated 
34 
92 
103 
Prosecution 
Recommendations 
17 
55 
36 
Informations/ 
Indictments 
18 
37 
40  
Sentenced 
30 
36 
26 
Incarceration  
Rate 
77% 
83% 
77%  
Average Months
to Serve 
24 
47 
36 
Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) 
2025 
2024 
2023 
Investigations
Initiated
 541 
542 
511 
Prosecution 
Recommendations
 357 
381 
350 
Informations/
Indictments
 310 
347 
319 
Sentenced
 323 
316 
235 
Incarceration  
Rate 
81% 
73% 
77%  
Average Months
to Serve 
34 
29 
32 
16 
17 

 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
  
IRS-CI ANNUAL REPORT 2025
Appendix (2/2)  
This appendix includes investigation data appearing in the annual report 
as well as extended information regarding incarceration rates. 
Non-Filer 
2025 
2024 
2023 
Investigations
Initiated
 245 
221 
251 
Prosecution 
Recommendations
 147 
131 
141 
Informations/
Indictments
 118 
127 
115 
Sentenced
 126 
101 
116 
Incarceration  
Rate 
80% 
75% 
83%  
Average Months
to Serve 
34 
25 
28 
Public Corruption 
2025 
2024 
2023 
Investigations
Initiated
 32 
44 
37 
Prosecution 
Recommendations
 25 
38 
18 
Informations/
Indictments
 31 
34 
15 
Sentenced
 28 
26 
38 
Incarceration  
Rate 
79% 
77% 
82%  
Average Months
to Serve 
51 
32 
37 
Questionable Refund Program 
2025 
2024 
2023 
Investigations
Initiated
 127 
109 
93 
Prosecution 
Recommendations
 80 
43 
39 
Informations/
Indictments
 69 
18 
40 
Sentenced
 40 
57 
65 
Incarceration  
Rate 
78% 
84% 
72%  
Average Months
to Serve 
32 
52 
42 
Terrorism 
2025 
2024 
2023 
Investigations
Initiated
 15 
21 
14 
Prosecution 
Recommendations
 8 
15 
12 
Informations/
Indictments
 9 
15 
12 
Sentenced
 10 
28 
9 
Incarceration  
Rate 
80% 
57% 
67%  
Average Months
to Serve 
43 
17 
127 
Identity Theft 
2025 
2024 
2023 
Investigations
Initiated
 161 
106 
137 
Prosecution 
Recommendations
 116 
74 
96 
Informations/
Indictments
 118 
67 
98 
Sentenced
 76 
87 
81 
Incarceration  
Rate 
87% 
89% 
80%  
Average Months
to Serve 
63 
58 
50 
International Operations 
2025 
2024 
2023 
Investigations
Initiated
 142 
174 
147 
Prosecution 
Recommendations
 123 
139 
128 
Informations/
Indictments
 132 
152 
117 
Sentenced
 148 
149 
128 
Incarceration  
Rate 
81% 
82% 
85%  
Average Months
to Serve 
66 
59 
63 
Money Laundering 
2025 
2024 
2023 
Investigations
Initiated
 1153 
1080 
955 
Prosecution 
Recommendations
 868 
805 
805 
Informations/
Indictments
 695 
693 
675 
Sentenced
 549 
515 
479 
Incarceration  
Rate 
86% 
81% 
84%  
Average Months
to Serve 
75 
67 
74 
Narcotics 
2025 
2024 
2023 
Investigations
Initiated
 577 
627 
528 
Prosecution 
Recommendations
 505 
523 
480 
Informations/
Indictments
 452 
514 
451 
Sentenced
 489 
468 
418 
Incarceration  
Rate 
83% 
82% 
85%  
Average Months
to Serve 
89 
83 
89 
18 
19 

-
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
IRS-CI ANNUAL REPORT 2025
IRS-CI Organization Chart  
Office of the Chief 
• Office of Communication  
• Commissioner’s Protection Detail 
Strategy 
Cyber and Forensic Services 
Advanced Analytics and Innovation 
Technology Operations 
Global Operations 
• National Criminal Investigation Training Academy 
• Asset and Knowledge Management 
• Assurance and Advisory 
• Workforce Development 
• Human Resources 
• Finance 
• Project Office 
• Cybercrimes  
• Center for Science and Design 
• Digital Forensics 
• Applied Analytics  
• Refund Fraud and Investigative Support 
• Nationally Coordinated Investigations Unit 
• Innovation 
• Systems and Operational Support  
• Data Management & Governance 
• Development  
• Field Operations 
• Global Operations Policy & Support  
• Special Investigative Techniques 
• Asset Recovery and Investigative Services  
• International Field Operations and 
International Liaison and Strategy 
• Financial Crimes 
• Narcotics and National Security Section 
Field Operations 
• Western Area Field Operations  
• Southern Area Field Operations 
• Northern Area Field Operations 
20 
Publication 3583 (Rev. 3 2026)  Catalog Number 29201R  Department of the Treasury  Internal Revenue Service  www.irs.gov 
21 

 
ANNUAL REPORT 2025 
Publication 3583 (Rev. 3 -2026)  Catalog Number 29201R  Department of the Treasury  Internal Revenue Service  www.irs.gov

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