The $500 million sum represents the gross revenues Google collected in ad buys from hundreds of Canadian pharmacies, plus the earnings generated from the illegal drug sales to American consumers from 2003 to 2009, federal officials have said.
"I am extremely pleased that of the $500 million dollars forfeited by Google, $230 million will be distributed to five state and local agencies that contributed investigators to the legal team headed by my office," U.S. Attorney Peter F. Neronha said in a statement. "It is my hope and expectation that these monies will be used for the benefit of all Rhode Islanders, by enhancing our overall ability to fight crime and keeping our residents safe."
East Providence police, North Providence police and the attorney general's office will each receive $60 million, Neronha said. State police will receive $45 million and the Rhode Island National Guard will receive $5 million. The shares are based on the time and resources each agency provided to the investigation, according to Neronha's office.
And $100 million will be shared by four federal agencies that participated in the probe, officials said. The U.S. Postal Service is receiving $40 million and the U.S. Internal Revenue Service is getting $35 million. The U.S. Secret Service is receiving $15 million and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is getting $10 million.
The remaining $170 million is being deposited into the Department of Justice's Assets Forfeiture Fund, a national account used to pay expenses from forfeiture operations, including seizing property. The fund can also be used to pay for some general investigatory expenses.
The funds will be distributed to the local and state agencies after they submit spending plans, officials said. There are rules in place governing how the money can be used. Law enforcement investigations, training and equipment are among the items that can be paid for with the funds.
For the most part, the funds cannot be used to pay salaries, although there are exceptions, according to a government guide on the program. The funds are subject to auditing and other monitoring, officials said.
Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment Monday.
The Mountain View, Calif.-based company has said it is no longer letting Canadian online pharmacies advertise to U.S. consumers and should not have allowed the ads in the first place. Google has also said it has taken steps to prevent shady operators from advertising on the Internet search engine, including suing advertisers who were running scams and suing rogue pharmacies that were trying to circumvent company policies and verification procedures.
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