Wire Fraud Is One of Many Types of Bank Fraud

Identity theft continues to be a growing problem in Texas and throughout the United States. Many thieves use it to conduct a number of fraudulent activities, which include a large number of crimes targeting banks.

Specifically, you can be charged with wire fraud if you: 1) devise (or intend to devise) a scheme to obtain money or property by false or fraudulent pretenses or representations, and 2) transmit any writings, signs, signals or pictures by means of wire, radio, or television communication in interstate or foreign commerce for the purpose of executing that scheme.

Because banks are often involved, wire fraud is normally a federal crime that can result in a prison sentence of up to 30 years and fines of up to $1 million.

Banks are common targets of all kinds of fraud. These types of white collar crimes can include embezzlement, forgery, fraudulent loans, stolen checks, identity fraud, accounting fraud, counterfeiting, ATM theft, etc.

Defending against wire fraud charges

An attorney who specializes in defending against wire fraud and other similar types of crimes may employ several possible strategies. A defendant can be assured that the defense will be complicated – generally due to the large amount of records and forensic work that may be necessary to prepare a solid defense strategy.

In any fraud case, the primary motivation of a victim is to recover as much of their assets as possible. An attorney may be able to use this as part of a negotiating strategy to strike the best possible plea agreement for a defendant.

In other cases, it may be possible to use entrapment as a defense. An attorney may be able to plant enough reasonable doubt in a jury’s mind to have a case dismissed by attempting to prove that a defendant had no predisposition to commit fraud under normal circumstances.

Yet another defense is that a defendant had a lack of knowledge that they were committing a crime or did not understand, or know, about the source or nature of the funds that were stolen or defrauded.

Again, these defenses tend to be complicated, and how an attorney approaches a case will depend on the unique circumstances of the case.

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