Are silent witness rewards subject to being taxed

i live in az. i received a 50k reward thru silent witness in 1999. is it subject to being taxed?

>>i received a 50k reward thru silent witness in 1999<<

What, exactly, is that ?
A "reward" from whom,...for what ?

The reward was issued by a bank, for providing information leading to the conviction of the bank robbers. I did not receive a 1099 from the bank, however they did send one to the IRS. Now of course the IRS wants the money plus penalties and interest.

Its probably taxable as compensation for services rendered. There's at least 1 published Revenue Ruling which so holds,...Rev. Rul. 76-374 , 1976-2 CB 19.