The tip-off from the employee is apparently crucial in the case, but the question remains if the worker will be able to cash in on the $60k reward at all.The rules are complicated, as they stipulate tipsters in with a chance of the FBI portion of the reward cannot nominate themselves.
This means the McDonald’s worker will have to be put forward by an investigating agency, such as the Department of Defense or the FBI, which is then reviewed by an interagency committee.
If approved, the suggestion is passed on to the Secretary of State, who signs off on the final decision.
Basically, you can’t just claim you tipped off the feds and collect the reward money. The feds have to officially acknowledge you as the actual tipster who led them to the suspect (and I believe there’s something in there saying the guy has to be officially convicted before a reward is handed out, to ensure people don’t give false tips just for the reward).
The process to be recognized as the official tipster by authorities is complicated and probably includes a bit of paperwork to process. And I’m sure that’s a very low priority compared with actually arresting and charging the guy, not to mention waiting out the whole trial process to see if they’re convicted of the crimes.
After all that, if they even remember you tipped them off and are willing to nominate you as their official tipster, then you might be able to claim a reward. So it’s not a guaranteed thing.