New York Criminal Defense Blog

When people in New York hear or read stories about financial professionals being accused of illegally or unethically obtaining or using company funds, they may automatically assume the person is guilty or has little to no option to defend themselves. That is certainly untrue as the justice and legal system is set up to allow all defendants the right to prove their innocence. Sometimes, charges can come to be dropped in what may seem to some by unusual circumstances.

A recent case involving a former hedge fund chief financial officer provides a good example of this. According to the Institutional Investor, the woman was hired in 2016 and reported directly to the chief executive officer. The company eventually initiated a claim against her alleging that she stole nearly $15,000 from the company via checks written to herself.

You hear the word "fraud," and immediately may think of nefarious characters looking to steal millions from businesses or private citizens in New York. In reality, however, fraud accusations can be far-reaching. The Federal Bureau of Investigation defines it as "the intentional perversion of the truth for the purpose of inducing another person or other entity in reliance upon it to part with something of value or to surrender a legal right." This potentially broad application has led many of those that we here at Sapone & Petrillo, LLP have worked with to be unwittingly accused of conducted fraudulent activities. One such activity that is becoming increasingly prevalent is return fraud. 

You purchase an item from a seller or retailer with the expectation that you have the right to return it. Recent years, however, have seen businesses suffer from people taking advantage of return policies by either purchasing products, using them and then returning them claiming they were defective, or even going so far as to steal items and then returning them asking for refunds. A seller or retailer might easily mistake your attempt to return a product as this type of fraud if it questions your motives for returning it. 

The common assumption amongst most in New York is likely that it is impossible to "accidently" commit a crime (particularly a federal one). Thus, claims if innocence to criminal activity are often met with great deal of skepticism. However, there are indeed where circumstances unbeknownst to you could indeed invite criminal scrutiny, especially if you are in the business of employing the others. 

For example, you may have not been aware of the fact that employing an illegal alien is indeed a federal crime. Sure enough, Section 1908 of the U.S. Attorney's Criminal Resource Manual states that it is illegal to hire an unauthorized alien or to continue to employ one whose immigration status (at least with respect to his or her employment) had changed. Furthermore, you cannot refer employees (for a finder's fee) to other companies if those employees are in the U.S. illegally. Doing so could make you subject to significant fines and penalties. 

The popular representation of white collar crimes may often be that of a high-tech scheme concocted and carried out by sophisticated, "James Bond"-type perpetrators. Yet in reality, such offenses are typically committed by ordinary people caught up in fraudulent schemes. In fact, such crimes can often seem so unextraordinary that they could realistically be going on right under people's noses without them knowing about it. If and when such activity is brought to light, however, how those who find out about it react could potentially play a role in assigning culpability in the future. 

This point is clearly illustrated in a recent case involving a Minnesota woman. In late 2016, she allegedly discovered that her husband's options trading business was actually a ponzi scheme. Instead of investing his client's money, the man had used it to fund their lifestyle. Rather than insisting that he stop, however, she supposedly helped him carry on the scheme, sending reassuring emails and texts to clients while also helping to bring in new investors. In all, the couple reportedly stole over $1 million from 51 people.