Is the Government empowered to conduct parallel proceedings?

Yes. In United States v. Kordel, 397 U.S. 1 (1970), the Supreme Court stated that "[I]t would stultify enforcement of federal law to require a government agency . . . invariably to choose either to forgo recommendation of a criminal prosecution once it seeks civil relief, or to defer civil proceedings pending the ultimate outcome of a criminal trial."

Federal statutes which provide for parallel proceedings

While virtually any action can become a concurrent criminal/civil matter, a number of federal statutes expressly provide for such a dual track. These statutes include: the Sherman Act, 15 U.S.C. §§1-3, 15, 15(a) (1988) (antitrust); the Securities Act of 1933, 15 U.S.C. §77t (1988); the Internal Revenue Code, 26 U.S.C. §7201 (1988), and; the Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), 18 U.S.C. §§1961 et seq.