White Collar Crimes

If you have been accused of white collar criminal offenses like bank fraud, securities fraud, forgery, tax fraud, tax evasion, theft of trade secrets, conspiracy, insider trading, environmental law violations, counterfeiting, financial institution fraud, computer crimes, mail fraud, and wire fraud you need experienced New York white collar crime attorneys to help fight your case.

If you have been accused of a white collar crime like bank fraud, securities fraud, forgery, tax fraud, tax evasion, theft of trade secrets, conspiracy, insider trading, environmental law violations, counterfeiting, financial institution fraud, computer crimes, mail fraud, and wire fraud our experienced New York criminal defense attorneys can help you. Put the experience, knowledge and training of a former prosecutor to work for you.

White collar crime is a general term used to distinguish the sort of crime that goes on in the office or board room rather than in the street, but that does not mean the charges are any less serious. The federal government and the state of New York sometimes punish crimes of theft or fraud just as severely as malicious and intentional violent crime. In fact, some sentences that have, in sum and substance, been indistinguishable from life sentences for murder, have been handed down by the United States District Court of the Southern District of New York, and other courts in the region for crimes that are merely financial in nature, without any violent component whatsoever.

If you have been accused of a white collar crime like bank fraud, securities fraud, forgery, tax fraud, tax evasion, theft of trade secrets, conspiracy, insider trading, environmental law violations, counterfeiting, financial institution fraud, computer crimes, mail fraud, and wire fraud our experienced New York criminal defense attorneys can help you.

The federal and New York state governments can sometimes use unscrupulous tactics in investigating white collar crime. These tactics include the use of confidential informants. A confidential informant is often someone who, once ensnared in their own criminal wrongdoing, attempts to trade information with the prosecutor’s office or police in exchange for a reduced sentence or reduced charges. Once recruited by the police, even the most loyal friend or employee may divulge secrets related to the intimate workings of your business. The confidential informant may even falsely implicate you in a fabricated criminal scheme to save themselves from prosecution. Our experienced criminal defense attorneys know how to defend cases involving confidential informants and have the experience in cross-examining confidential informants to expose confidential informants for what they are – criminals- and discredit them, and help you get the best possible outcome in your case.

The federal government has also begun the widespread use of wiretapping to target and trap innocent financial professionals. Title III of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968, also known as the Wiretap Act, has been used for decades for its legitimate purpose, to control organized crime and curtail national security threats. The US Attorney’s offices have widely exceeded the statute’s intended scope. The Wiretap Act only allows for investigations into predicate crimes listed in 18 USC 2516. Although some white-collar offenses are listed as predicate crimes, its notable that securities fraud is completely absent. Despite this, the US Attorney’s office of the Southern District of New York, used wiretaps to target and pursue ailing billionaire Raj Rajaratnam and convict him of insider trading and securities fraud. Rajaratnam suffered from diabetes and kidney problems requiring dialysis. Inadequate medical care in prison could have been what amounted to a death sentence, yet he was still sentenced to 11 years in prison.

Generally, Wiretaps do require warrants that issue only on probable cause that a predicate crime is being committed, and the requirements for the content of wiretap warrant applications are stringent. If wiretap evidence is obtained beyond the scope of the warrant it is vulnerable to suppression. It must be cautioned that warrant applications for wiretaps are only necessary where all parties do not consent to be wiretapped. This means that a criminal informant wearing a listening device or recording a phone call may be able to secure evidence to aid in the prosecuting a white-collar crime suspect.

At no time in the past have law abiding investment professionals ever needed to be concerned that they would be wiretapped or that their co-workers would selfishly make false accusations to save themselves from accountability. But these are different times. If you or someone you love has been accused of a white-collar crime our experienced white collar crime attorneys stand ready to challenge any evidence that the government seeks to introduce against you, whether it be from a confidential informant or from a wiretap. Call us now for a free consultation.