• Qui Tam
  • SEC
  • CFTC
  • FCPA
  • Whistleblower Resources
  • FAQS
Subscribe
Donate
No Result
View All Result
Whistleblower Network News
The Truth at Any Cost.
Qui Tam, Compliance and Anti-Corruption News.
SIGN THE PETITION FOR NATIONAL WHISTLEBLOWER DAY IN 2023
Whistleblower Network News
  • Qui Tam
  • SEC
  • CFTC
  • FCPA
  • Whistleblower Resources
  • FAQS
Subscribe
Donate
No Result
View All Result
Whistleblower Network News
No Result
View All Result
Home Whistleblower of the Week

Natalie Mayflower Sours Edwards, FinCEN Whistleblower

Jane TurnerbyJane Turner
July 12, 2022
in Government, Whistleblower of the Week
Reading Time: 4 mins read
Natalie Mayflower Sours Edwards, FinCEN Whistleblower
Share on TwitterShare on FacebookShare on LinkedInEmail

Edward’s story was published in Whistleblower Network News’ Whistleblower of the Week series in four parts: 8/4/21, 8/18/21, 9/15/21 and 10/13/21. She has also been featured in two podcast episodes, one where she tells her story and the other where she engages in conversation with investigative reporter Jason Leopold.

Edwards was charged in 2018 with one count of unauthorized disclosures of suspicious activity reports (SARs) and one count of conspiring to unlawfully disclose SARs. She pled guilty to one count in January 2020 and served six months in prison. The information Edwards provided to BuzzFeed News was used to produce dozens of news stories, and resulted in recognition as a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. Edwards was also responsible for FinCEN to overhaul their money laundering programs, even though FinCEN condemned the disclosures, saying it could have affected U.S. national security and compromised the safety of FinCEN reports.

That statement preceded President Biden signing the executive order (Memorandum on Establishing the Fight Against Corruption as a Core United States National Security Interest) vowing to make global financial systems more transparent in order to “prevent and combat corruption at home and abroad; and making it increasingly difficult for corrupt actors to shield their activities.” Exposing money laundering and criminal activity around the globe was exactly what Edwards sought. The information presented the role some of the world’s biggest banks held in regard to international money laundering, trafficking of goods and people and corruption of financial regulators. The documents exposed politicians, criminal groups and obscenely wealthy individuals who used the financial system to dodge taxes and launder dirty money.

Support Whistleblower Network News

Due to Edwards blowing the whistle on corruption around the world, governments were spurred into action with new efforts to fight money laundering. The Treasury Department, Edwards’ former employer, announced plans to address the evolving threats of illicit finance. American regulators acknowledged after Edwards’ whistleblowing that dirty money had formed like cancer inside the guts of financial institutions.

Members of Congress credited the FinCEN disclosures as helping to pass the Corporate Transparency Act, a total makeover of the United States anti-money laundering policy. Throughout the world, policy makers and politicians advised they would pursue updating their anti-money laundering policies. BuzzFeed’s editor noted that the confidential documents that Edwards provided “exposed how major banks profited from dirty money coursing through their accounts, while the U.S. government watched but rarely took action.”

In April 2020, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network’s acting director, Himamauli Das, told a congressional committee that they were falling behind on creating an ownership database. The registry is mandated by the Corporate Transparency Act, which was an outgrowth after the revelations in FinCEN files leaked by Edwards. Millions of companies incorporated in the U.S. must report the names of their true owners to the federal government, which would allow investigations or shut off accounts with links to criminal actors. The FinCEN files were credited with helping the legislation get passed in 2020.

Edwards, as a senior member in Treasury, attempted to notify her managers several times about irregularities and mismanagement of investigations into money laundering to no avail. She revealed severe shortcomings in the Treasury Department that reverberate to this day.

But what is the cost of being a whistleblower who changed how the world operates? Edwards has lost her house, car, career and income. Her whistleblowing case sits with the United States Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) which only reached a full quorum on 3/4/22, with thousands of cases pending. The Washington Post noted that Edwards was “largely unknown and mostly forgotten,” a sad commentary on how people are treated who speak truth to power. The Post also noted “She is one of the most important whistleblowers of our era, and yet hardly anyone remembers her name.”

But one should not consider Edwards missing in action, she has been noted as “one of the most important whistleblowers of our era” and continues to fight for recognition and justice in her case. Edwards changed the Treasury Department, FinCEN and the world. We have not heard the last from her, and she is currently involved in advocating for whistleblower issues. She is also Chairperson of Virginia Tribal Consortium, which is the only Tribal Education Agency which banded all federally recognized tribes in Virginia to unite in operating for education. Their video can be viewed here.

Edwards’ GoFundMe can be found here.

Read past Whistleblower of the Week profiles on WNN.

Tags: Update
Previous Post

VA Whistleblower, Podcast Host Dr. Allison Gill to be Keynote Speaker at National Whistleblower Day

Next Post

The Latest Big Tech Whistleblower: Uber Whistleblower Mark MacGann

Jane Turner

Jane Turner

Jane Turner is a former FBI whistleblower and highly decorated 25-year veteran Special Agent who changed the FBI forever. She is also on the Board of Directors for Accountability FBI, past chair of the Whistleblower Leadership Council and is a Member of the Board of Directors at the National Whistleblower Center, and the acclaimed host and writer of Whistleblower of the Week - a Whistleblower Network News column which explores the experiences of those who blew the whistle and the realities of what it meant to be a whistleblower.

Next Post
Uber Whistleblower

The Latest Big Tech Whistleblower: Uber Whistleblower Mark MacGann

Receive Daily Alerts

Subscribe to receive daily breaking news and legislative developments sent to your inbox.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Most Popular

Change the Culture, Make National Whistleblower Day Permanent

Tell President Biden to “Finish the Job” for Whistleblowers

Whistleblower Advocates See Parallels to Enron in Silicon Valley Bank Collapse

Whistleblower Jóhannes Stefánsson Plans to Testify at Fishrot Trial in Namibia

WNN Exclusive Interview with Social Security Whistleblowers Sarah Carver and Jennifer Griffith — Part 1

Whistleblower Raised Concerns of Rodents, Spiders in Kitchen of Childcare Facility, Then Fired; OSHA Rules They Were Retaliated Against

Whistleblower Poll

Whistleblower Poll
Whistleblower Poll

Exclusive Marist Poll: Overwhelming Public Support Among Likely Voters For Increased Whistleblower Protections

byGeoff Schweller
October 6, 2020

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

STAY INFORMED.
Subscribe to receive breaking whistleblower updates.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

About Us

  • About
  • Contact Us
  • Donate
  • Careers

Subscribe

  • Daily Mail
  • Follow us on Twitter
  • YouTube Channel

Contribute

  • Letter to the Editor
  • Submission Guidelines
  • Reprint Guidelines

Your Experience

  • Accessibility Statement
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use

Help

  • The Whistleblowers Handbook
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Advertise
Whistleblower Network News

Whistleblower Network News is an independent online newspaper providing our readers with up-to-date information on whistleblowing. Our goal is to be the best source of information on important qui tam, anti-corruption, compliance, and whistleblower law developments. 

Submit an Article

Copyright © 2021, Whistleblower Network News. All Rights Reserved.

This Newspaper/Web Site is made available by the publisher for educational purposes only as well as to give you general information and a general understanding of the law, not to provide specific legal advice. By using this website, you understand that there is no attorney-client relationship between you and the Newspaper/Web Site publisher. The Newspaper/Web Site should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed professional attorney in your state.

SIGN THE PETITION FOR NATIONAL WHISTLEBLOWER DAY IN 2023
No Result
View All Result
  • Exclusives
  • Government
    • False Claims-Qui Tam
    • Federal Employees
    • Intelligence
  • Corporate
    • CFTC & Commodities
    • Dodd-Frank
    • IRS & Tax
    • SEC & Securities
  • Features
  • Legislation
  • International
    • Foreign Corruption
  • Rewards
  • Whistleblower of the Week
  • Environment & Climate
  • Opinion
  • Editorial
  • Employment
    • Sarbanes-Oxley Whistleblowers
    • Retaliation
    • OSHA
  • Media
    • Podcasts
    • Videos
    • Webinars
    • National Whistleblower Day
  • Whistleblower Poll
  • Whistleblower Resources
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Resources for Locating An Attorney
    • The New Whistleblowers Handbook
  • National Whistleblower Day ’23

Copyright © 2020, Whistleblower Network News. All Rights Reserved.

Become a Whistleblower Network News Subscriber

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Subscribe to WNN

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Subscribe to WNN

Add New Playlist

Go to mobile version