Source: Office of United States Attorneys
Hammond, Indiana – Acting U.S. Attorney Tina L. Nommay announced today that the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Indiana collected $5,219,650 in criminal and civil actions in Fiscal Year 2024. Of this amount, $2,667,519 was collected in criminal actions and $2,552,131 was collected in civil actions.
The Northern District of Indiana also worked with other U.S. Attorney’s Offices and components of the Department of Justice to collect an additional $1,925,938 from cases pursued jointly. Of this amount, $2,200 was collected in criminal actions and $1,923,738 was collected in civil actions. For example, one of the civil cases handled in conjunction with the Environmental Enforcement Section of the Department of Justice, resulted in the recovery of $1,018,433 as part of a settlement agreement reached in the matter of United States v. Cleveland-Cliffs Burns Harbor, LLC.
The U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, along with the department’s litigating divisions, are responsible for enforcing and collecting civil and criminal debts owed to the United States and criminal debts owed to federal crime victims. The law requires defendants pay restitution to victims of certain federal crimes who have suffered a physical injury or financial loss. While restitution is paid to the victims, criminal fines and felony assessments are paid to the department’s Crime Victims Fund, which distributes the funds collected to federal and state victim compensation and victim assistance programs.
Additionally, the Northern District of Indiana, working with partner agencies and divisions, collected $855,895 in asset forfeiture actions in FY 2024. Forfeited assets deposited into the Department of Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund are used to restore funds to crime victims and for a variety of law enforcement purposes.