Lawmakers look to crack down on fraud, public corruption with new whistleblower program

WASHINGTON - There’s a new effort to crack down on fraud and public corruption. Federal officials in Virginia say they won’t people involved in the crimes if they admit what they did through a new whistleblower program.

So what’s the point of not prosecuting people who admit they’re guilty? Officials tell FOX 5 they believe that encouraging whistleblowers to come forward and provide information and cooperation could lead to not only stopping fraud and corruption on a larger scale but also speed up investigations and prosecutions of other individuals.

The U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Jessica Aber tells FOX 5 that in northern Virginia, this would only be for non-violent offenders, but it is designed to encourage cooperation. 

"The advantage to us is to have an insider from the beginning to help us piece by piece to put a case together and short circuit a larger investigation that might take years," Aber said. "Frankly, we could short-circuit that to weeks or months." 

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Typically, anyone who cooperates with the government has no guarantee that they’d be shielded from charges. And it’s important to note that while the whistleblower won’t be prosecuted, the other people they blow the whistle on will be. 

Aber tells FOX 5 that one of the messages they’re trying to get out is that if people are involved in corruption or fraud, it might be to their advantage to speak to the U.S. Attorneys before any of their accomplices.

"Part of the program that the whistleblower will work with to build a prosecution against one or more people — people who are equally or more culpable in the scheme," Aber said. 

Whistleblowers would still be on the hook for any money they made off their crimes. They’d have to any benefit or profit made off their criminal conduct and make restitution for their role in the fraud operation.