About the National Fraud Enforcement Division

Summary

A Department of Justice web page titled About the National Fraud Enforcement Division, updated August 7, 2026. It states that the division investigates and prosecutes those who commit fraud against the American people, using data-driven investigative techniques and partnerships with law enforcement. It states that President Donald J. Trump announced the creation of the division in January 2026, and that on April 1, 2026 Colin M. McDonald was sworn in as the first Assistant Attorney General for the division. It also states that on April 7, 2026 Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche directed the division to expand into a litigating division, and that the division will set national enforcement priorities and propose legislative and regulatory reforms.

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About the National Fraud Enforcement Division

Mission

The Department of Justice’s National Fraud Enforcement Division (“Fraud Division”) investigates and prosecutes those who commit fraud against the American people. We fulfill our mission by using advanced data-driven investigative techniques; coordinating with agencies responsible for administering taxpayer-funded programs; partnering with federal, tribal, state, territorial, and local law enforcement on fraud-fighting efforts; developing systems and processes that ensure efficient identification and investigation of fraud; and equipping prosecutors and law enforcement with state-of-the-art tools and resources needed to bring criminal actors to justice. The Fraud Division works every day to protect the financial integrity of the United States of America, ensure the vibrancy of the American economy, and seek justice for victims of fraud.

Background

President Donald J. Trump announced the creation of the Fraud Division in January 2026, commissioning the division with a broad mandate to “enforce the Federal criminal and civil laws against fraud targeting Federal government programs, Federally funded benefits, businesses, nonprofits, and private citizens nationwide.” The Fraud Division is central to the Department of Justice’s support of President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud , a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.

On April 1, 2026, Colin M. McDonald was sworn in as the first Assistant Attorney General for the Fraud Division. In that role, Assistant Attorney General McDonald has been tasked with “leading the Department’s efforts to investigate, prosecute, and remedy fraud affecting the Federal government, Federally funded programs, and private citizens.” On April 7, 2026, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche charged the Fraud Division with adopting “a comprehensive and coordinated approach to investigating and prosecuting fraud against taxpayer dollars and taxpayer-funded programs.” Hailing the Department’s “storied history of combatting fraud and bringing criminal actors to justice,” Acting Attorney General Blanche directed “immediate action to expand the National Fraud Enforcement Division into a robust litigating division capable of reaching any fraud—large or small—perpetrated against taxpayer dollars.”

Pursuant to this mandate , the Fraud Division will develop and set national enforcement priorities for the Department of Justice, and propose legislative and regulatory reforms as necessary to close systematic vulnerabilities to fraud to prevent future abuses. The goal is deterrence: the robbing of the American people and America’s purse must end. That is what the National Fraud Enforcement Division is working each day to accomplish.

Updated August 7, 2026

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