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#896156 - 01/30/08 03:51 PM Request for more financial info-SAR
Compliance101 Offline
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Tennessee
We did a SAR on a customer that resulted in a gov. agency requesting more info. Does the gov agent need to have a summons, subpoena or a formal writen request and a certificate of compliance before the financial institution releases the info?
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#896174 - 01/30/08 04:02 PM Re: Request for more financial info-SAR Compliance101
Compliance101 Offline
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Tennessee
Another situation. What if the financial institution's attorney requested the District Attorney to prosecute a customer of ours for check kiting, does the gov agent need anything in writing in this situation?
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#896286 - 01/30/08 05:18 PM Re: Request for more financial info-SAR Compliance101
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FinCEN Guidance #2007-G003, 6/13/07 states F/I's "must provide all documentation supporting the filing the the SAR upon reguest by FinCEN or an appropriate law enforcement or supervisory agency (OCC, FDIC, F/R, etc.)." We are instructed on the SAR to NOT provide the documentation WITH the SAR- but it's inferred that we did submit it...So if they can have the SAR, then they can have the backup documentation...Take care to verify that a requestor is in fact who they say they are. NOTE: If a person calls up and provides you pretty accurate details about information in the SAR - or about the account, you can probably take a chance that they're for real - just document name, phone number, etc to help to protect yourself...

Interesting add-on: I've also been told by Detroit that if we get a call from an agent on a situation for which we did NOT yet file a SAR - we can request the agent call back later (without confirming or denying we filed a SAR), then FILE THE SAR, then take their questions. (Anything to help the boys in blue... )

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#896291 - 01/30/08 05:22 PM Re: Request for more financial info-SAR Compliance101
BMcGuire Offline
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Check kiting question - I would hopefully assume that if the bank has taken the step to get their attorney and DA involved that a SAR has already been filed...If that is the case, then again - no subpoenas, etc are necessary...AND if the SAR had not been filed - one should be filed immediately! If a SAR was not filed because of the amount(s) being under $5000, file anyway. You don't have to wait until you hit the $5000 mark - it's just REQUIRED that you file at $5,000.

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#896294 - 01/30/08 05:24 PM Re: Request for more financial info-SAR BMcGuire
Compliance101 Offline
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Thanks so much for your answers.
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#896306 - 01/30/08 05:33 PM Re: Request for more financial info-SAR Compliance101
Retread Offline
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Originally Posted By: Compliance101
We did a SAR on a customer that resulted in a gov. agency requesting more info. Does the gov agent need to have a summons, subpoena or a formal writen request and a certificate of compliance before the financial institution releases the info?


Be careful. If the information they have requested is the documentation for the SAR, you can give it to them. If they are asking for "more info" (meaning something outside the SAR), you either need to file a supplemental SAR or get a subpoena for the additional information.
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#896548 - 01/30/08 07:24 PM Re: Request for more financial info-SAR Retread
MyKidsMom Offline
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How about bank statements? Certainly the transactions contained in the statements would be part of the SAR documentation but maybe not the statement itself. Could "supporting documentation" be as broad as the statement?

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#896809 - 01/30/08 10:45 PM Re: Request for more financial info-SAR MyKidsMom
John Burnett Offline
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If the bank statements were part of the documents you researched in filing the SAR, and in fact are needed to understand or back up your statements on the SAR, they should be listed in the narrative as part of the documents supporting the filing. Then they should be part of your documentation in your files, and subject to release to law enforcement without subpoena.

If you didn't look at the statements and didn't use them in developing your SAR filing, they are extra information, and not considered part of your filing. Therefore, they can't be released without legal compulsion, such as a subpoena.
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#896864 - 01/31/08 12:48 AM Re: Request for more financial info-SAR John Burnett
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John makes a good point and that is why you should keep only the information supporting that actual SAR filing in a specific segregated file. There should be no questions later what documents support that SAR. If you get a request for a document that is not in the file - they are not a part of your filing.

You would be surprised at the number of times I ask for the supporting documentation and a bank says - give us a few minutes, we are going to have to do some research and print it for you.
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#2046587 - 10/28/15 01:02 PM Re: Request for more financial info-SAR John Burnett
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If we're reporting debit card transactions as suspicious in a SAR filing, but the card number isn't printed on the statements we reviewed or in the narrative (it can be retrieved by clicking on the transaction in the core), would the card number be considered part of the backup documentation?

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#2046594 - 10/28/15 01:18 PM Re: Request for more financial info-SAR Compliance101
bcompliance Offline
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I would include the debit card number in the narrative if it I was able to obtain it.
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#2046595 - 10/28/15 01:24 PM Re: Request for more financial info-SAR bcompliance
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I agree, but I'm asking about a SAR that was already filed. It wasn't in the narrative or in the bank statements. Considering we reported the POS transactions as suspicious and those transactions are on the statement (card number isn't on the statement), I'm wondering if the card number would be considered part of the backup documentation; it's connected to the transactions we reported.

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#2046630 - 10/28/15 02:49 PM Re: Request for more financial info-SAR Compliance101
bcompliance Offline
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I would want proof of what debit card I was talking about included in the documentation with the other material I used when the SAR was filed, if that is what you are asking. Will you remember what debit card you were talking about the next time an examiner asks you about it? Probably not, but if you have that documentation with the SAR it will be easily referenced without much research.
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