Attempts to commit banking or credit card fraud could leave someone facing serious charges. The many financial institutions in New York may deal with numerous forms of bank fraud. Some individuals might attempt to defraud a bank by trying to acquire a small personal loan, and other fraud schemes could focus on appropriating millions of dollars. Whatever the alleged crime’s specifics, federal penalties could be harsh if the defendant is found guilty.
Bank fraud schemes targeting financial institutions
Bank fraud involves using false pretenses, misrepresentation and other tactics to take money from a financial institution. Lying on a mortgage application could result in fraud charges as would providing false identification to withdraw money from someone else’s account. Again, bank fraud comes in numerous forms.
Bank fraud and deceptive credit card use scams might be more common than international wire fraud schemes, but they remain crimes. Someone could submit a credit card application with vastly inflated income figures. The approval and subsequent use of those credit cards might get someone into legal jeopardy.
Dealing with bank fraud charges
A person charged with bank fraud may be able to disprove the complaint. With bank fraud, the government must prove that the defendant “willingly and knowingly committed” fraud. Someone who overestimated income based on reasonable projections of previous years’ income levels may not “knowingly” commit a crime.
Criminal cases are not civil suits, so the bar for a guilty verdict is “beyond a reasonable doubt.” Establishing specific facts could put reasonable doubt in a jury’s mind or make a compelling argument for outright innocence.
Each case is unique and may rely on a different defense strategy. For example, bank fraud investigations sometimes involve entrapment, so violations of a defendant’s rights could lead to the charges’ dismissal. Ultimately, there are many ways that things could play out in court if the case goes to trial.