The Justice Department and Postal Service have made their first-ever whistleblower award, paying out $1 million to a tipster whose information led to a multimillion-dollar penalty against an online used car auction business. The payment was made through a new incentive program in an antitrust case. Justice Department officials announced the award Thursday.
Attorney General Pam Bondi said the payment is the first made under a policy rolled out in July, designed to encourage people with inside information to report antitrust and related competition crimes with a connection to the U.S. Mail.
According to the Justice Department, the whistleblower’s report led investigators to EBLOCK Corporation, which operates an online auction platform for used vehicles. EBLOCK has resolved criminal antitrust and fraud charges through a deferred prosecution agreement filed in federal court in the Central District of California. As part of the agreement, the company has agreed to pay a $3.28 million criminal fine.
The case centers on EBLOCK’s November 2020 acquisition of another online auction platform referred to in court documents as Company A. Federal prosecutors said EBLOCK did not move quickly after the purchase to stop misconduct tied to Company A. From November 2020 through February 2022, individuals at Company A and another platform, Company B, allegedly conspired to suppress competition for used vehicles sold through Company A’s online auctions, violating the Sherman Act.
Prosecutors also described “shill bidding” on Company A’s platform — fake bids intended to push prices higher. The Justice Department said the scheme included sharing confidential bidding information, coordinating maximum bids, and relisting vehicles purchased through bid rigging. Investigators also alleged the development of software to place sham bids under the names of real auto dealerships without their consent.
These officials stated that documents related to this scheme were mailed via the U.S. Mail, an aspect that Postal Inspection leaders considered a major factor in this investigation. According to the Justice Department, the FBI and the US Postal Inspection Service investigated the case.
Under the whistleblower program, tipsters who are qualified may collect between 15% and 30% of the funds collected if the information they initially provided leads to a criminal fine or recovery of at least $1 million.
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