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The Securities and Exchange Commission announced that three whistleblowers have been rewarded with more than $25,000 for information they provided that assisted the Securities and Exchange Commission in stopping a fraudulent hedge fund. The payment is the first installment of payments anticipated to go to the whistleblowers. When additional assets are recovered from the hedge fund manager the whistleblowers are anticipated to receive additional payments. California securities and whistleblower lawyers are anticipating that more whistleblower rewards will come as the Securities and Exchange Commission investigates the tips it is receiving. In this case, the Securities and Exchange Commission issued an order that rewarded each of the whistleblowers with five percent of the money that the Securities and Exchange Commission recovers. In cases that are associated with related criminal proceedings where money is collected by another regulatory agency, whistleblowers may apply for additional rewards based on what the other regulatory agency has collected if it qualifies as a related action. In this case, the defendant pleaded guilty to five counts of wire fraud in December of 2012. The defendant also consented to forfeit his interest in property that had been seized by the Justice Department. He was sentenced to spend forty months in prison. In the criminal action, more than $170,000 has been collected by the government. That money is considered to be a related action, so the whistleblowers will receive a reward from that collection. Additional payments will be made if the government recovers additional funds from the defendant. California securities and whistleblower lawyers say that whistleblower awards are likely to become more frequent as the Securities and Exchange Commission investigates more tips. The order handed down by the Securities and Exchange Commission does not name the whistleblowers. The confidentiality of whistleblowers is protected under the whistleblower program. According to the Securities and Exchange Commission, two of the whistleblowers provided the Securities and Exchange Commission information that prompted the initial investigation and helped to stop the scam before more investors suffered harm. The third whistleblower assisted the Securities and Exchange Commission by identifying witnesses and confirming information provided by the other two whistleblowers. The Securities and Exchange Commission whistleblower program rewards whistleblowers who offer quality original information that leads to an enforcement action in which more than $1 million in sanctions is the result. California securities and whistleblower lawyers remind the public that whistleblowers help save taxpayer dollars. Evans Law Firm, Inc. is concerned about fraud and false claims being perpetrated against the government. Evans Law Firm, Inc. handles whistleblower/false claims, consumer fraud class actions, insurance and banking fraud, consumer product liability, elder abuse, and personal injury cases. If you think that you have witnessed fraud against the government then, contact Evans Law Firm, Inc. at (415) 441-8669 for a free and confidential consultation, or email info@evanslaw.com.
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