Forfeiture in rem
A civil judicial forfeiture is an in rem (against the property) action brought in court against the property or money. The property or money itself is the defendant, and no criminal charge against the owner is necessary. An owner of or interest holder in the property may file a claim against the property and ask for a hearing to decide the validity of the owner’s or interest holder’s claimed interest in the property.
Source: U.S. Treasury Department
FAYETTEVILLE — Federal law enforcement officials are seeking the forfeiture of almost $4 million they say were proceeds from scams targeting more than 2,000 elderly people in several states who were instructed to pay the grifters with Walmart gift cards, according to documents filed in U.S District Court on Friday.
The total loss in the scams between April 5, 2016, and Nov. 6, 2018, was $4,403,750, and the total recovered amount seized by the government was $3,958,061.
The scams were first noticed by Walmart investigators looking for fraudulent financial transactions. Walmart officials froze the suspicious accounts and notified the U.S. Secret Service in December 2018, according to court documents. Walmart put the money in a bank account for safekeeping last November.
The Secret Service has been working with Walmart to identify victims so their money can be returned.
In the fall of 2015, Walmart’s Global Investigations team noticed a pattern of regular inquiries from local police departments regarding…
