The Department of Justice (DOJ) just issued a new memorandum that may reshape how the government handles False Claims Act (FCA) cases involving federally funded benefits programs. Signed by Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate on May 27, 2026, the memo directs DOJ attorneys to accelerate their review and prosecution of whistleblower suits alleging fraud in Medicaid, housing, food assistance, and other state-administered federal benefits programs.
The Policy
The memo flows from an executive order issued in March 2026 establishing a task force to eliminate fraud in federal benefits programs. At its core, it imposes strict new timelines on DOJ’s handling of benefits fraud qui tam cases and creates an explicit framework for fast-tracking whistleblower suits.
Here is how the new protocol works:
The 60/120-Day Initial Review
When a new benefits-fraud qui tam is filed, DOJ will aim…
CLICK HERE to read the FULL DOJ Puts Benefits Fraud Cases on a Fast Track – JD Supra article.
THE HASHFLARE “CLOUD MINING” PONZI SCHEME (GLOBAL/ESTONIA)
Date: February 13, 2025 (Guilty Pleas) Perpetrators: Sergei Potapenko and Ivan Turogin
Case Description: This $577 million cryptocurrency fraud remains one of the largest digital asset scams in history, with major legal developments concluding in 2025. Potapenko and Turogin operated “Hashflare,” which they marketed as a massive cryptocurrency mining operation. Hundreds of thousands of victims worldwide purchased “mining contracts,” believing they were renting hash power to mine Bitcoin. In reality, the duo was running a sophisticated Ponzi scheme.
They created fake customer dashboards that showed “real-time” mining profits, but the money being paid out was simply the capital of newer investors. They laundered the proceeds through shell companies to purchase luxury real estate and a fleet of high-end vehicles. After a massive international investigation involving the FBI and Estonian authorities, the pair agreed to forfeit over $400 million in assets. This case underscores the “Cyber-enabled Fraud” warning issued by the FATF in early 2026: as technology evolves, the scale of fraud moves from local millions to global billions in the blink of an eye.
Link to Original: ACFE – High Profile Fraud of 2025