Fort Lauderdale Bank Fraud Lawyers: Defending Your Rights
Overview of Bank Fraud Laws
While bank fraud can take many forms, it essentially involves deceiving a bank or financial institution to illegally obtain money or assets. Under federal statute 18 U.S.C. Section 1344, bank fraud includes activities like check fraud, identity theft to access accounts, mortgage fraud with falsified documents, and insider schemes by bank employees. Convictions can lead to $1 million fines and 30 years imprisonment per offense.
Florida state laws also prohibit various forms of bank fraud and related financial crimes. Charges may be brought under statutes like:
- Florida Communications Fraud Act
- Florida Financial Transaction Device Fraud Act
- Florida Identity Theft and Fraud Acts
Prosecutors can pursue state or federal charges against individuals and entities suspected of bank fraud in Fort Lauderdale. These complex cases require an attorney well-versed in financial criminal defense.
Common Bank Fraud Schemes
Check Fraud: Altering, forging, or counterfeiting checks to steal money from accounts. May involve changing the payee, amount, or signature.
Credit Card Fraud: Using stolen cards or card numbers to make unauthorized purchases. Can also involve taking out loans or lines of credit in another person’s name.
Insider Fraud: Bank employees exploiting their positions to embezzle funds, make unauthorized loans or trades, or share customer data used to commit fraud.
Identity Theft: Pretending to be an account holder to access funds or assets. May use stolen personal information or create fake IDs.
Mortgage/Loan Fraud: Falsifying income, employment, credit scores or assets to qualify for loans. Also includes providing false information on loan applications.
Account Takeover Fraud: Gaining control of another person’s bank account by stealing login credentials through hacking, phishing, or social engineering.
If you are accused of any of these schemes, having an attorney who understands both banking practices and financial crimes is paramount.
Building an Effective Defense Strategy
While bank fraud cases can seem daunting at first, there are several ways a knowledgeable lawyer can defend against charges and aim for a favorable outcome like dismissal of charges or acquittal. Common strategies include:
Attacking Insufficient Evidence: Prosecutors must prove each element of bank fraud beyond reasonable doubt. An attorney can review the evidence (or lack thereof) to identify speculation, unsupported assumptions or inadequate links to the accused.
Highlighting Good Faith: Bank fraud requires intent to deceive the institution. Your lawyer may argue you had a good faith belief that your conduct was lawful and authorized.
Demonstrating Lack of Intent: Relatedly, it may be possible to show the prosecution cannot conclusively establish you knowingly sought to defraud the bank or customer.
Suppressing Unlawfully Obtained Evidence: If investigators violated your constitutional rights gathering evidence, your lawyer may be able to get such evidence excluded from trial.
Seeking Statute of Limitations Dismissal: Most bank fraud charges must be brought within 10 years. An attorney can determine if the statute of limitations has expired.
Attacking the Credibility of Witnesses: Prosecution witnesses can often be impeached on their credentials, bias, inconsistencies or character.
Presenting Mitigating Circumstances: Your lawyer may be able to secure sentencing leniency by demonstrating contributing external factors and presenting character evidence.
Negotiating Plea Deals: While maintaining innocence is imperative, a lawyer may be able to negotiate a favorable plea bargain as an alternative to risking trial if conviction chances seem high.
Securing dismissal of charges or acquittal requires thoroughly analyzing the prosecution’s approach, identifying every viable defense, and proactively building your case. An attorney experienced with bank fraud allegations understands how to handle these cases strategically while resolving them efficiently.