The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Illinois announced it collected more than $8.1 million in civil and criminal actions during Fiscal Year 2025.
U.S. Attorney Steven D. Weinhoeft reported that the office gathered $3,937,603 from criminal cases and $4,188,354.34 from civil actions over the year. In addition to these amounts, the district worked with other U.S. Attorney’s Offices and Department of Justice divisions to collect an extra $367,003.26 through jointly pursued cases. Of this sum, $267,714.26 came from criminal matters and $87,289 from civil matters.
“Collecting restitution and other debts is a vital component of the Department of Justice’s mission,” said U.S. Attorney Steven D. Weinhoeft. “Thanks to efforts by Assistant U.S. Attorneys, the Financial Litigation Unit and the asset recovery team in southern Illinois, we have prioritized collections on debts owed to crime victims and the U.S.”
The largest civil settlement reached by the office in FY 25 involved recovering $3.5 million from Denali Group, Inc., an Alaskan-based transportation company accused of violating the False Claims Act.
U.S. Attorneys’ Offices are responsible for enforcing and collecting both civil and criminal debts owed to the United States as well as criminal debts owed to federal crime victims. Federal law requires defendants to pay restitution to victims who have suffered physical or financial harm due to certain federal crimes; while restitution is directed to victims, fines and felony assessments are paid into the Department’s Crime Victims Fund for distribution among victim compensation and assistance programs at federal and state levels.
Additionally, working with partner agencies and divisions, the Southern District of Illinois collected $520,888 in asset forfeiture actions during FY 25. The proceeds from forfeited assets are deposited into the Department of Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund for use in restoring funds to crime victims or supporting law enforcement activities.
