The Trump administration says its trade fraud crackdown has already topped $1 billion in recoveries and alleged losses, less than a year after the launch of a task force dedicated to this initiative.
The figure includes money recovered through criminal and civil cases, including penalties, settlements, restitution, asset forfeitures and losses alleged in pending cases, according to the task force. Only $150 million of that total is tied to pending cases. The news was shared exclusively with CNN.
The Trump administration has made trade enforcement a central part of its broader effort to increase tariff collections and crack down on companies accused of circumventing US trade rules.
The task force, led by the Justice Department and Department of Homeland Security, was established just as President Donald Trump’s delayed “Liberation Day” tariffs took effect, with rates as high as 50% on goods from certain countries. The Supreme Court later ruled the president lacked sufficient authority to impose the tariffs.
The steep tariff rates gave importers a greater financial incentive to reduce their duty bills — sometimes through legal strategies, such as adjusting products to qualify for different tariff classifications or using customs-regulated warehouses that allow companies to delay payments.
