Long Island White collar crimes Lawyer

White collar crimes

While violent crimes like murder and rape tend to draw the biggest tabloid headlines, so-called white collar crimes are prosecuted just as harshly in Nassau and Suffolk County. Indeed, although some people think of white collar offenses as largely victimless crimes, the reality is that they often involve the theft or misappropriation of large sums of money from financial institutions. This gives prosecutors an important financial incentive to go after potential white-collar criminals, as an arrest or conviction can lead to the recovery of these stolen assets.

White collar criminal cases also tend to be among the more complex types of litigation handled by our criminal justice system and white collar crime attorneys. As such, if you are charged with such an offense, you need to work with a qualified Long Island white collar crimes lawyer. Karpf Criminal Law is a full-service New York criminal defense firm with an experienced criminal defense attorney who has successfully represented many clients in cases involving allegations of fraud, healthcare fraud, forgery, embezzlement, and similar crimes involving money and other property requiring internal investigations and corporate investigations from a white collar crime lawyer from our attorney’s office near Long Island, NY.

What Are the Most Common White Collar Criminal Charges on Long Island?

“White collar crime” is a term of art used to describe any criminal offense that is nonviolent and involves the use of some form of fraud, money laundering, or deceit to obtain property. The term itself dates back to the 1930s and was used to describe a person of “high social status” who engaged in these types of financial crimes while trying to avoid law enforcement agencies. But today, people of all social status and class backgrounds can find themselves charged with a white collar crime and can even face federal prosecutors under federal law.

Some examples of common white collar crimes recognized by the New York Penal Law from our white collar attorney include:

• Bribery: Although bribery is most often associated with making an improper payment to a government official, New York law also forbids bribery in many other contexts. For instance, it is a crime to bribe a participant in a sporting contest or a labor official.
• Criminal Tax Fraud: Failing to pay your taxes on time is, in most cases, not a crime. But if you acted with the intent to evade any tax you owe, or defrauded the state or federal government in some way, you can be charged with criminal tax fraud.
• Embezzlement: If you take or wrongfully appropriate property that has been entrusted to you by the lawful owner, that is considered embezzlement. For instance, if you steal money from your employer, that is embezzlement. New York law considers embezzlement a form of larceny.
• Falsifying Business Records: If you are engaged in any kind of business, either individually or through a legal entity such as a corporation, it is a crime to make any false entry in your business records, or to alter or destroy a true business record. This includes any records you keep on a computer or other electronic storage medium.
• Forgery: The falsification of any written instrument, with the intent to defraud or deceive another, is considered forgery. This can include signing someone else’s name to a legal document, altering the dollar amount on a check, or even fabricating a public record. It is also an offense to knowingly possess any forged instrument, even if you were not the person who committed the forgery in the first place.
• Insurance Fraud: It is a crime to knowingly present a false insurance claim of any kind. This also includes making any false statements in connection with an application for an insurance policy. For example, if you present a claim to your health insurer for a medical procedure you never actually received, that is insurance fraud. So would lying about your accident history on an application for auto insurance.
• Mortgage Fraud: If you lie on a mortgage application, or otherwise present any false statements with the intent of obtaining a residential mortgage, that is considered mortgage fraud.

One thing to note with any white collar crime is that the severity of the charge–and therefore the potential maximum sentence–is often tied to the dollar amount of the property involved in criminal offenses. In other words, even if you committed a single act of fraud, if it involved a large enough amount of money, you could be facing serious felony charges.

How to Fight a Criminal Charge

Many criminal charges are not brought until police have conducted a lengthy investigation. Law enforcement from the state and even the federal government could be involved. However, our clients benefit from a lawyer’s help very early in the process.

As soon as you catch wind that the police or a regulator is investigating your conduct, call us. Many white collar cases stand or fall based on the information you share with the government. Investigators are very good at getting people to admit to conduct that sounds suspicious. Or they request mountains of paperwork to comb through, looking for mistakes.

The defenses we raise on behalf of our white collar clients will depend on the charges. Often, criminal intent is in dispute. Prosecutors typically must show you intentionally committed certain acts when, in reality, simple carelessness might be to blame. For example, many defendants are charged with fraud due to simple billing errors that stem from faulty accounting processes in the back office. Submitting an erroneous invoice might have been a mistake, not part of a fraudulent scheme.

In other cases, we can argue that the conduct in dispute was authorized. For example, your boss might have told you to deposit money into certain accounts or allowed you to use computers for a certain reason.

Protecting Your Reputation

Fighting the charges in court is only one part of defending our clients. Professionals and other members of the business community stand to suffer reputational loss if convicted. A person’s reputation takes decades to build. One criminal complaint could leave a permanent taint and make it difficult, if not impossible, to find employment in your field.

Contact a White Collar Crime Attorney at Karpf Criminal Law Today

A white collar criminal conviction can not only lead to significant jail time. Prosecutors may also come after any assets you own as restitution for the crime itself. So if you are looking to protect your freedom, not to mention your family’s financial security, it is important to work with the best Long Island white collar crimes attorney. Call Karpf Criminal Law today at (631)424-6444 to schedule a consultation.