[Title 28 CFR 8]
[Code of Federal Regulations (annual edition) - July 1, 2009 Edition]
[Title 28 - JUDICIAL ADMINISTRATION]
[Chapter I - DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE]
[Part 8 - FBI FORFEITURE AUTHORITY FOR CERTAIN STATUTES--]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office]
28JUDICIAL ADMINISTRATION12009-07-012009-07-01falseFBI FORFEITURE AUTHORITY FOR CERTAIN STATUTES--8PART 8JUDICIAL ADMINISTRATIONDEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
PART 8_FBI FORFEITURE AUTHORITY FOR CERTAIN STATUTES--
Table of Contents
Sec.
8.1 Definition.
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8.2 Designation of officials having seizure authority.
8.3 Designation of the investigative bureau having administrative
forfeiture authority; claims for awards, offers in compromise
and matters relating to bonds.
8.4 Custody of seized property, inventory and receipt.
8.5 Appraisement of property subject to forfeiture.
8.6 Quick-release authority.
8.7 Judicial forfeiture.
8.8 Advertisement and declaration of forfeiture.
8.9 Disposition of forfeited property.
8.10 Remission or mitigation of forfeiture.
Authority: 5 U.S.C. 301; 28 U.S.C. 509, 510.
Source: Order No. 1128-86, 51 FR 8818, Mar. 14, 1986, unless
otherwise noted.
Sec. 8.1 Definition.
For the purpose of this part, the term statutes shall include the
following statutes unless otherwise noted in this part: Interstate and
Foreign Commerce--Gambling Devices--Transportation Prohibited, Jan. 2,
1951, ch. 1194 section 7, 64 Stat. 1135 (codified at 15 U.S.C. 1177,
commonly referred to as Transportation of Gambling Devices); Organized
Crime Control Act of 1970, Public Law 91-452, title VIII, part C,
section 803(a), 84 Stat. 937 (1970) (codified at 18 U.S.C. 1955,
commonly referred to as Illegal Gambling Businesses); Copyrights Act,
Public Law 94-553, title I, section 101, 90 Stat. 2768 (1976) (codified
at 17 U.S.C. 509); Motor Vehicle Theft Law Enforcement Act of 1984,
Public Law 98-547, title II, section 201, 98 Stat. 2754 (1984) (codified
at 18 U.S.C. 512); Crimes and Criminal Procedure, June 25, 1948, ch.
645, section 1, 62 Stat. 786 (codified at 18 U.S.C. 1762, commonly
referred to as Prison-Made Goods); Child Protection Act of 1984, Public
Law 98-292, section 6, 98 Stat. 205 (1984) (codified at 18 U.S.C. 2254);
Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968, Public Law 90-351,
title III, section 802, 82 Stat. 215 (1968) (codified at 18 U.S.C. 2513,
commonly referred to as Wire Interception and Interception of Oral
Communications); Seizure of Arms and Other Articles Intended for Export,
June 15, 1917, ch. 30, title VI section 1, 40 Stat, 223; June 17, 1930,
ch. 497, title IV, 523, 46 Stat. 740; Aug. 13, 1953, ch. 434, section 1,
67 Stat. 577 (codified at 22 U.S.C. 401, commonly referred to as Illegal
Exportation of War Materials) ; Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986, Public Law
99-570, sec. 1351-1367 (1986) (codified at 18 U.S.C. 981, commonly
referred to as Money Laundering Control Act of 1986).
[Order No. 1128-86, 51 FR 8818, Mar. 14, 1986, as amended by Order No.
1197-87, 52 FR 24448, July 1, 1987]
Sec. 8.2 Designation of officials having seizure authority.
The Director, Associate Director, Assistants to the Director,
Assistant Directors, inspectors, and Agents of the Federal Bureau of
Investigation are authorized to seize such property as may be subject to
seizure pursuant to statutes identified in Sec. 8.1.
Sec. 8.3 Designation of the investigative bureau having administrative
forfeiture authority; claims for awards, offers in compromise and matters
relating to bonds.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is, in accordance with the
statutes identified in Sec. 8.1, authorized and designated as the
investigative bureau to perform various duties with respect to
forfeiture which are comparable to the duties performed by collectors of
customs or other persons with respect to the seizure and forfeiture of
vessels, vehicles, merchandise, and baggage under the customs' laws. The
Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation or his designee is
designated as the officer authorized to take final action under these
statutes on claims for award of compensation to informers, offers in
compromise, and matters relating to bonds or other security.
Sec. 8.4 Custody of seized property, inventory and receipt.
All property seized pursuant to the statutes identified in Sec. 8.1
shall be turned over to the U.S. Marshals Service when not held as
evidence or to be placed into official use following forfeiture. An
inventory shall be prepared by the Federal Bureau of Investigation of
the seized property and a receipt given for it to the person from whom
it was seized at the time of seizure or as soon thereafter as practical.
[[Page 223]]
Sec. 8.5 Appraisement of property subject to forfeiture.
Seized property shall be appraised. The appraisement shall be the
function of the Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation
or his designee having custody of the property. The value of an article
seized shall be the price at which it or a similar article is fairly
offered for sale at the time and place of appraisement.
Sec. 8.6 Quick-release authority.
Where the forfeiture proceedings are administrative, the Special
Agent in Charge, prior to forfeiture, is authorized to release property
seized for forfeiture. The property can be quick-released when the
Special Agent in Charge deems that there is an innocent owner having an
immediate right to possession of the property or when the release would
be in the best interest of justice and the Government.
Sec. 8.7 Judicial forfeiture.
If the appraised value exceeds the monetary amount set forth in
title 19, United States Code, section 1607, or a claim and satisfactory
bond have been received either for property appraised at that amount or
less, or for seized merchandise which is any monetary instrument within
the meaning of section 5312(a)(3) of title 31 of the United States Code,
the Special Agent in Charge of the FBI field office that seized the
property shall transmit the claim and bond to the U.S. Attorney for the
judicial district in which the seizure was made for the purpose of
instituting judicial forfeiture proceedings. Also transmitted with the
claim and bond will be a description of the property and a complete
statement of the facts and circumstances leading to the seizure of the
property.
[Order No. 1476-91, 56 FR 8685, Mar. 1, 1991]
Sec. 8.8 Advertisement and declaration of forfeiture.
(a) The notice required by customs laws, section 607, Tariff Act of
1930, as amended (19 U.S.C. 1607), of seizure and intention to forfeit
and sell or otherwise dispose of property seized pursuant to the
statutes identified in Sec. 8.1, shall describe the property seized,
state the date seized, cause, and place of seizure; and state that any
person desiring to claim the property must file with the Special Agent
in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) within 20 days from the
date of the first publication of the notice a claim to such property and
a bond.
(b) The bond amount shall be $5,000 or ten percent of the value of
the claimed property whichever is lower, but not less than $250. The
bond posted to cover costs may be in cash, certified check, or
satisfactory sureties. When the claim and bond are received by the
Special Agent in Charge, he shall, after finding the documents in proper
form and the sureties satisfactory, transmit the documents, together
with a description of the property and a complete statement of the facts
and circumstances surrounding the seizure, to the U.S. Attorney for the
judicial district in which the seizure was made for purpose of
proceeding to forfeiture of the property in a manner prescribed by law.
If the documents are not in satisfactory condition when first received,
a reasonable time for correction may be allowed. If correction is not
made within a reasonable time, the documents may be treated as nugatory,
and the administrative forfeiture shall proceed as though they had not
been tendered. The filing of the claim and the posting of the bond does
not entitle the claimant to possession of the property, however, it does
stop the administrative forfeiture proceeding.
(c) The notice for administrative forfeiture proceedings shall be
published once each week for at least three successive weeks in a
newspaper of general circulation in the judicial district in which the
property was seized. If a claim is not made within the time period, the
FBI Property Management Officer shall declare the property forfeited.
[Order No. 1128-86, 51 FR 8818, Mar. 14, 1986, as amended by Order No.
1197-87, 52 FR 24448, July 1, 1987; Order No. 1476-91, 56 FR 8687, Mar.
1, 1991]
Sec. 8.9 Disposition of forfeited property.
(a) If the laws of a state in which an article of forfeited property
is located prohibit the sale of such property or if the U.S. Marshals
Service is of the
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opinion that it would be more advantageous to sell the forfeited
property in another district, the property may be moved to and sold in
such other district as the U.S. Marshals Service may direct.
(b) If, after the administrative forfeiture of property is
completed, it appears that the proceeds of sale will not be sufficient
to pay the costs of sale or the proceeds will be insignificant in
relation to the expenses involved in the forfeiture, the U.S. Marshals
Service may order the destruction of the property. Similarly, property
forfeited under a decree of a court may be destroyed in accordance with
section 611, Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1611). Also, if the sale or
use of any article is prohibited under any law of the United States or
the state where it is stored, the U.S. Marshals Service may order it
destroyed or cause alteration of the property into an article that is
not prohibited.
(c) If arms and munitions are forfeited pursuant to 22 U.S.C.
401(c), the Secretary of Defense should be contacted to determine if he
desires this property.
Sec. 8.10 Remission or mitigation of forfeiture.
(a) Any person claiming a legal or equitable interest in any
property which has been forfeited pursuant to statutes identified in
Sec. 8.1, may file, in accordance with the provisions of 28 CFR part 9,
a petition for remission or mitigation of the forfeiture or a petition
for restoration of the proceeds of sale or for value of the property
placed in official use. If the foreiture proceedings are administrative,
the petition shall be addressed to the Director of the FBI and shall be
filed in triplicate with the Special Agent in Charge of the FBI field
office that seized the property. It must be executed and sworn to by the
person alleging interest in the property. If the forfeiture proceedings
are judicial, the petition shall be addressed to the Attorney General of
the United States and filed in triplicate with the Special Agent in
Charge of the FBI field office that seized the property. The petition
for a judicial forfeiture shall be sworn to by the petitioner, or by his
or her counsel upon information and belief.
(b) The petition shall include the following:
(1) A complete description of the property, including model and
serial numbers, if any, and the date and place of seizure;
(2) The petitioner's interest in the property, which shall be
supported by bills of sale, contracts, mortgages, or other satisfactory
documentary evidence; and,
(3) The facts and circumstances, established by satisfactory proof,
relied upon by the petitioner to justify remission or mitigation of the
forfeiture. For further information regarding the content of a petition,
see 28 CFR 9.5.
(c) Where the petition is for restoration of the proceeds of sale,
or for value of the property placed in official use, it must be
supported by satisfactory proof that the petitioner did not know of the
seizure prior to the declaration of forfeiture and was in such
circumstances as prevented petitioner from knowing of the same.
(d) A petition for remission or mitigation of forfeiture should be
filed within 30 days of the receipt of the notice of seizure. Once
forfeited property is disposed of, a petition for remission or
mitigation of forfeiture will no longer be accepted. A petition for
restoration of proceeds of sale or for value of the property placed in
official use must be filed within 90 days of the sale of the property,
or within 90 days of the date the property is placed in official use.
(e) Upon receipt of a petition, an appropriate investigation shall
be conducted by the FBI. No hearing shall be held. For administrative
forfeitures, the petition and the results of the petition investigation
shall be forwarded to the Legal Counsel Division, FBI. Final decisions
on petitions for property forfeited administratively shall be made by
the Assistant Director, Legal Counsel, FBI or his designee within the
Legal Counsel Division, FBI. For judicial forfeitures, the petition and
the results of the petition investigation shall be forwarded to the U.S.
Attorney who prosecuted the property. The U.S. Attorney shall forward
the petition and
[[Page 225]]
the results of the investigation together with a recommendation as to
allowance or denial of the petition to the Assistant Attorney General,
Criminal Division. The matter shall be assigned to the Asset Forfeiture
Office who shall either grant the petition by remission or mitigation of
the forfeiture or shall deny it.
(f) A request for reconsideration of the denial of the petition for
an administrative forfeiture must be submitted within 10 days from
receipt of the letter denying the petition. Such request shall be
addressed to the Director of the FBI for referral to the FBI Legal
Counsel Division and shall be based on evidence recently developed or
not previously considered. Only one request for reconsideration of a
denial of a petition shall be considered. For further information
regarding petitions see 28 CFR part 9.