Attorney General Pam Bondi announced in a press release Thursday that the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the United States Postal Service had given its first-ever reward to a whistleblower under a new policy launched in July.

“This enabled us to dismantle a $16 million fraud scheme that was cheating American consumers,” Bondi said in a post on the social platform X.

The $1 million reward was given in conjunction with the Postal Service because the whistleblower’s intelligence included an alleged scheme that involved sending documents through the mail. The whistleblower, unnamed by the DOJ, gave information leading to criminal and antitrust charges being levied against EBlock Corporation, an online auction company for vehicles.

“Whistleblowers serve as the Justice System’s greatest disinfectant against criminal antitrust conspiracies,” Deputy Assistant Attorney General Omeed A. Assefi of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division said in the release. “A car is the second largest purchase most Americans will make in their lifetimes. This whistleblower helped expose a brazen $16 million scheme that made it more expensive for hardworking Americans to afford second-hand cars across the country.”

EBlock Corporation, as a result of the acquisition of another company, allegedly engaged in “the placement of fake bids intended to artificially increase the sales prices for used vehicles,” according to the release.

As a result, EBlock Corporation will receive a $3.28 million fine and, as part of a deferred prosecution, must undertake remedial measures, including implementing an appropriate compliance program and cooperating with the DOJ’s ongoing criminal investigation, according to the release.

The FBI and the Postal Inspection Service conducted the investigation.

“In this case, the defendant used the U.S. Mail to send documentation related to the scheme; a scheme that valued illegal profits over protecting unsuspecting car buyers. The Postal Inspection Service does not tolerate this abuse of the U.S. Mail or its customers and will pursue these types of criminals wherever they are,” Gary Barksdale, the service’s chief postal inspector, said in the Thursday release.

In July, the DOJ announced the new “Whistleblower Rewards Program” in coordination with the Postal Service to tackle the reporting of “postal-related antitrust crimes that undermine the competitive process or market competition across industries,” according to a press release at the time.

“This reporting mechanism gives those with a vested interest in maintaining the integrity of the Postal Service the opportunity to join us in the fight,” Barksdale said in July.

The DOJ said in Thursday’s release that whistleblowers who report antitrust crime information that results in criminal fines or other recoveries of at least $1 million may be eligible to receive a whistleblower reward, which can range from 15 to 20 percent of the amount collected.

“Under President Trump’s leadership, we will continue to fight against corporate collusion and monopolistic behavior — come forward and help us!” Bondi said in a Thursday social media post. (The Hill)

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