APRIL 2016
In This Issue

"Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future."
~ John F. Kennedy
 

 
We are grateful to have the opportunity to provide you this valuable information via our monthly e-newsletter and our unparalleled forensic accounting and investigative services.

The goal of this e-newsletter is to provide you critical, inside information that will help you prevail when defending an IRS criminal case. We will do this by sharing the knowledge we have from our 25+ years of experience as an IRS Special Agent.

We take special care to ensure the information we provide you in "The Beacon" is the latest and most current information available. In this edition, we cover the change coming in the investigative community and why a Kovel Letter is important.

We want to write about topics that will assist you in prevailing with criminal IRS cases. Please e-mail us your topics of interest to [email protected] 
 
We encourage you to share our e-newsletter with others in your sphere of influence.
 
Sincerely,
 
Edmond J. Martin
 
Principal, Chief Investigator
Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE)
Texas Certified Investigator (TCI)
Change is Coming for the Investigative Community

Any investigator specializing in financial fraud investigation will generally be required to analyze bank and brokerage records. This analysis is one of the most important elements of any investigation. Using DIO, a proprietary software of Sage Investigations, converts paper or PDF bank statements to an Excel spreadsheet, consuming less time and input by staff, and making analysis easier. DIO also establishes a link between each line item on the Excel spreadsheet, therefore allowing the instant review of each transaction.

It appears that this type of analysis in the future will be hampered by technology. Research has shown that Bank of America and Frost Bank have changed to Smart ATM equipment. The equipment will accept a deposit without a deposit slip and place an image of the deposited item on the customer receipt. Unfortunately, most people do not retain the receipt in their records, and receipts fade with time. The bank does not make the deposited item in the account available to the customer; instead it provides a placeholder for the amount in the bank statement.

When it comes time for an individual to read more... 
Why is a Kovel Letter Important?

An attorney should always issue a Kovel Letter to a forensic accountant after being hired by a client to represent them in a civil or criminal tax matter.

What is a Kovel letter? It is a letter based on a landmark federal case, United States v. Kovel, 296 F.2d 918 (2d Cir. 1961). This is based upon the refusal of Louis Kovel to testify before a grand jury that was investigating a client of his law firm. When the accountant was held in contempt of court for refusing to answer questions in front of a grand jury, the Second Circuit reversed the contempt citation, reasoning that the accountant was akin to a "translator," helping the attorney provide legal advice that depended upon an unfamiliar "language" (i.e., accounting).  As a result, communications among the accountant, the attorney, and the ultimate client were protected from disclosure through an extension of the attorney-client privilege.

As a result of this case, an attorney retained by a client in a tax matter should wait until after he is hired to have his firm hire a forensic accountant. Therefore, anything the accountant finds or produces...
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About Us

Serving your needs is our priority.

  

At Sage Investigations we are dedicated to serving our clients nationally, to help them navigate the difficulties of dealing with the IRS, and other complex (forensic) financial fraud investigations both civil and criminal. By narrowing our focus to our primary strength of following the money, we steer our knowledge, efforts, and experience to financial issues. We help our clients propel their cases forward by assisting in the review, acquisition, and organization of financial records, evaluating the elements of their cases, and helping create winning strategies. Through the use of our proprietary advanced financial investigative technology we analyze complex financial data quickly, easily and efficiently, saving our client's time and money.

 

Sage handles all cases with altruism, professionalism, honesty, integrity, passion and respect. When you hire Sage, you hire a team of professionals with skill and knowledge that helps you have more effective solutions. We are innovative with our DIO cutting edge technology, and perform every investigation in an orderly and organized manner to develop a clear investigative roadmap and deliver a quality work product. The compass that guides us is strong leadership and accountability. Learn more...

 

Contact Us

 

P.O. Box 160161

Austin, TX 78716

Phone: 512-659-3179

Fax: 512-328-6878

Email: [email protected] 

www.sageinvestigations.com

Texas License #A10803

 

 

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