News Roundup

• Federal prosecutors are attempting to seize $25 million in assets from notorious mobster and FBI informant Whitey Bulger. This is in addition to the $822,000 already seized from Bulger's Santa Monica residence, with the feds contending that all proceeds of his illicit activities must be forfeit, not just his profits.
• A US District Judge has ordered the forfeiture of a building in New York City estimated to be worth between $500 and $700 million. The value of the property has soared since the government moved to seize it in 2008 and it is being billed as the “the largest real property forfeiture” in United States history. - Link to the Judge's Order
• Law enforcement agencies in Rhode Island are deciding what to do with an expected $230 million payday. The payments stem from Google's forfeiture of $500 million to the federal government in 2011. The award to the North Providence Police Department is 10 times its annual budget and the payment to Rhode Island's Attorney General is double its yearly budget. 
• Business Week details how federal agencies auction seized property.
• The Jacksonville, NC police department and the Duplin County Sheriff's Office received a combined $366,000 through the equitable sharing program.
• Agencies in the Philippines are seeking the forfeiture of money connected to the 'pork barrel' graft probe that lead to protests throughout the country.
• Two departments in Texas received a combined $699,000 in forfeiture proceeds connected to a case involving a web-based pill mill.
• The Mendocino county DA and Auditor-Controller are battling over the use of $315,000 in asset forfeiture funds. The Auditor's office is disputing DA Eyster's planned use of the revenue to "pay for basically all of his office expenses", which would be a violation of forfeiture spending guidelines.