Historical Context
Nearly a century ago, the IRS’ criminal investigators successfully built the case that led to Al Capone’s conviction for tax evasion.
This year, the IRS Criminal Investigation division, responsible for investigating tax-related crimes, has extended its reach by assisting ICE in migrant arrests and deploying agents to Washington D.C. and Memphis, Tennessee, as part of a broader crime reduction initiative.
Despite these new responsibilities, the division is operating with a reduced workforce—approximately 100 fewer special agents and 230 fewer staff members compared to previous years, according to their latest annual report.
Guy Ficco, the chief of the division, noted that these new missions have been “resource intensive” and highlight his team’s adaptability. He emphasized that while these tasks go beyond traditional tax enforcement, they showcase the valuable contributions of IRS agents to interagency collaborations.
The partnership with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement began in May when IRS-CI assigned some agents to assist in arresting and processing migrants. The focus was on individuals associated with transnational gangs and locating children separated from their families.
The agency also reached an agreement to share certain IRS data with Homeland Security for tracking deportation targets; however, a federal judge recently ordered them to cease this practice due to potential legal violations.
This year, IRS-CI dedicated 63.3% of its time to tax investigations—a decrease from about 70% over the past two years—while narcotics investigations accounted for 11%. Notably, non-tax investigations increased significantly from 17.6% of casework time last fiscal year to 23.7% this year.
The agency identified $4.5 billion in tax fraud alongside $6.1 billion related to other financial crimes. They referred over 2,000 cases for prosecution and achieved an impressive 89% conviction rate on concluded cases.
The rise of cybercrimes continues unabated; IRS-CI reported seizing 2.35 petabytes of data in fiscal year 2025—a nearly 60% increase from the previous year.
Ficco stated that the agency is actively combating government program fraud and investigating those attempting to evade U.S. financial sanctions. He remarked on their crucial role in dismantling criminal networks exploiting government programs.
This year did not see headlines similar to those during the Biden administration when two whistleblower agents testified about political interference affecting their investigation into Hunter Biden. However, key metrics such as total investigations initiated rose from 2,667 in fiscal year 2024 to 2,792 this fiscal year.
The increase included investigations into corporate fraud, identity theft, money laundering, and financial institution fraud while cases related to abusive tax schemes and public corruption saw declines.
Total prosecution recommendations jumped from 1,794 last year to 2,043 this year.
A notable case involved investigating a scheme called Feeding Our Future which defrauded over $300 million from a pandemic meals program in Minnesota; charges have been filed against at least 78 individuals involved.
