Whistleblower Rewards

June 3, 2021

A Department of Energy (DOE) prime contractor responsible for cleaning up a decommissioned nuclear production complex in Washington State has agreed to pay over $3 million to resolve alleged False Claims Act violations involving false and fraudulent small business subcontract reports.  Whistleblower Salina Savage and her company, Savage Logistics LLC, had alleged that CH2M Hill Plateau Remediation Company (CHPRC) knowingly misrepresented two of its subcontractors, Indian Eyes, LLC and Phoenix-ABC A Joint Venture, as businesses located in Historically Underutilized Business Zones (HUBZones) in order to meet contract requirements and obtain reimbursements totaling hundreds of millions of dollars from DOE.  As a result of bringing a successful enforcement action, Savage and her company will receive a relator’s share of approximately $865,000.  USAO EDWA

June 2, 2021

The SEC awarded $23 million to two individuals who voluntarily provided information as whistleblowers that led to recoveries by the SEC and another federal agency in related enforcement actions. Information provided by the first whistleblower, who received approximately $13 million, initiated the investigations.  The second whistleblower, who waited several years before coming forward, provided additional information that substantially contributed, and was awarded approximately $10 million.  Both provided ongoing assistance to the Commission and the other agency, providing documents, participating in interviews, and identifying key individuals and systems involved in the investigations.  SEC

May 27, 2021

An anonymous individual received and SEC whistleblower award of $4.2 million.  According to the SEC, the individual voluntarily provided detailed, original information that caused the Commission to open an investigation that led to a successful enforcement action.  During the investigation, the individual met with investigative staff on multiple occasions, identified key players, and provided additional helpful information and documents.  A second claimant was denied an award; Commission staff stated that they had not communicated with or used any information provided by that claimant.  SEC

May 27, 2021

Navistar Defense LLC, a manufacturer of military vehicles, will pay $50 million to resolve False Claims Act allegations that it fraudulently induced the U.S. Marine Corps to enter into a contract modification at inflated prices for a suspension system for armored vehicles known as Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles.  During negotiations for the modification, Navistar was asked to provide certain sales information to assess the reasonableness of Navistar’s proposed prices.  The U.S. alleged that Navistar provided the government with fraudulent sales invoices to justify the company’s prices, and that the government relied on these invoices during negotiations.  The investigation was initiated by a qui tam complaint filed by whistleblower Duquoin Burgess, a former Government Contracts Manager for Navistar, who will receive $11,060,000 from the settlement.  DOJ

May 19, 2021

An anonymous whistleblower has received an award of $28 million, representing a share of recoveries by the SEC and by another federal government agency in a related action.  The Commission's order states that the involved company reported wrongful conduct in one geographic region, and the whistleblower voluntary submitted information to the SEC regarding similar improprieties by the company in a different country.  SEC

May 17, 2021

The SEC made an award of $750,000 to one whistleblower and $3.75 million to a second whistleblower based on findings that they provided information that assisted SEC staff in related civil and criminal proceedings against a company and individual.  The first individual provided information relevant to the action against the individual only, but did so more than five years after learning of the violation.  The second individual, who received a larger award, was originally denied any award by the SEC, but, upon reconsideration, the SEC concluded that they had voluntarily provided information to the Commission prior to being contacted by the Commission.  Three other claimants were denied awards.  SEC

May 17, 2021

Two whistleblowers were awarded a total of $27 million, with the SEC finding that the information they jointly and voluntarily provided aided an enforcement action which resulted in the return of millions of dollars to harmed investors, even through most of the information the individuals provided was already known the SEC from other sources. The two individuals had also reported their concerns internally and met in-person with SEC staff over the course of two days. SEC

May 12, 2021

The SEC made a whistleblower award of $3.6 million to an individual who provided new information that resulted in the opening of an SEC investigation directly based on that information, and provided ongoing assistance to the Commission during the course of the investigation.  At the same time, the SEC denied a whistleblower award to a second individual who submitted information regarding the company in the same covered action, finding that the information provided by the second claimant did not significantly contribute to the success of the Covered Action.  SEC