Bank and Wire Fraud

Seemingly, there is hardly a simpler crime than bank or wire fraud. Generally speaking, if someone defrauds(i.e. lies), or attempts to execute a scheme to defraud, or obtains money by false or fraudulent pretenses(i.e. lies) he has committed a crime. If he does this to a financial institution or by mail, telephone, internet or some other electronic means, he can be prosecuted by the federal government. 18 U.S.C § 1343, 1344.

That doesn’t tell the whole story, of course. The alleged schemes can be quite complicated and if more than one person is alleged to be involved in the scheme, the government often prosecutes the crime as a conspiracy to commit bank, mail or wire fraud. Most of the time the indictment contains numerous counts alleging every conceivable way of proving the fraud, including conspiracy, attempt, aiding and abetting and tax evasion.

We have defended a load of federal fraud cases, including mortgage fraud, and no matter how complex, they all seem to be controlled by one basic investigatory rule: Follow The Money. Documents always tell the truth, but documents can be interpreted, analyzed and put into context. Sometimes the only thing that connects an individual to the voluminous documents that make up the alleged fraud is one signature. But trust the FBI to float down the river of money when determining who is at fault.

Sometimes the innocent get caught up in the FBI’s net. After all, not everyone who makes money from a transaction is aware of deceit; think of the number of interrelated people involved in a real estate deal. Sometimes trusting individuals are aware of the deceit, but haven’t a clue about the extent and severity of the scheme. If he is going to limit his client’s exposure, Defense counsel must be thoroughly prepared and knowledgeable about the intricacies of the case. Most of the time this means a working knowledge of thousands of financial documents.

It’s a simple crime, but a person accused of federal fraud will not be involved in a simple case. Experienced counsel is a must. This is no place for the novice. If you are being investigated for Bank or Wire Fraud, give the experienced Board Certified lawyers at Stradley, Chernoff & Alford. We don’t charge for an initial consultation.