This week a former resident of Dublin, Ohio plead guilty to multiple charges involved in a massive fraud scheme, including money laundering, wire fraud, filing false tax returns and other white collar offenses. His scheme, involving false investments in real estate, totaled over $10 million. This situation is obviously an extreme case, but white collar crime is not uncommon, and there are many different types of fraud charges that individuals can face.
Many of the potential fraud offenses that could be brought against a person are considered federal offenses. These often carry steeper penalties and higher fines.
One of the more common federal crimes is known as wire fraud. This charge includes any instance of a person fraudulently using wired serviced, including telephones or internet that crosses state lines. Situation involving this offense can vary greatly, but they can include making fraudulent purchases on the internet or using either the internet or phone communications to falsely gain a profit.
Money laundering is a charge which is often paired with other offenses. When an offender gains large amount of cash through illegal means, they sometimes turn to money laundering to funnel the money into their accounts for use. Money laundering is the transformation of criminal proceeds into ostensibly legal profits. This is sometimes achieved through false business practices or other fraudulent manipulation of records.
Another of the most common white collar offenses is identity theft. This crime involves using another person’s personal identification for profit or to defraud a victim. In today’s world of technology, this is becoming increasingly common through website hacks, theft of a person’s credit card, call phone, or other means of taking advantage of electronic purchases. This offense could be pursued on a state or federal level, depending on the severity of the incident and amount of loss in question.
Other types of white collar crime that carry serious penalties include:
- -Embezzlement
- -Tax evasion
- -Extortion
- -Forgery
- -Insurance fraud
- -Racketeering
- -Engaging in Corrupt Activity
- -Mail fraud
The potential penalties of these offenses vary greatly depending on the amount of money in question, the offender’s prior history, and other factors. A conviction could mean decades in prison or hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines.
Because the federal government is likely to step in on many situations, and situations can quickly involve multiple charges, it can be very difficult to fight a white collar crime accusation. An attorney who is experienced in both state and federal courtrooms can be imperative in facing these types of fraud offenses.
