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Operation Atlantis produced no charges and no evidence that Euro Pacific Bank facilitated tax evasion or money laundering. Unable to secure a criminal result, the ATO and IRS, on behalf of the J5, pursued victory in the media instead. Confidential information was leaked to Nick McKenzie, whose defamatory 60 Minutes broadcast and The Age articles falsely portrayed the failed investigation as proof of criminal misconduct. To add credibility, McKenzie likely recruited New York Times reporter Matthew Goldstein to participate in the “investigation.” The resulting bad publicity caused customer withdrawals and financial losses that weakened the bank’s capital. The IRS then worked with OCIF to shut down the already-damaged bank and market the closure in a way that created the false appearance that the bank was guilty of facilitating tax evasion and money laundering, thereby vindicating McKenzie’s original accusations. The ATO and IRS thus used the press to inflict the damage that later helped them manufacture the official “success” their investigation had failed to produce. @Ageinvestigates, @MattGoldstein26