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NYC Bank Fraud Lawyers
When you think about bank fraud, most of the time people think about situations where a debit card is stolen and purchases are made using someone else’s money. While this very much is a case of bank fraud, there are other situations that are considered to be in the same category. If you are in the market for buying a home, your lender can commit bank fraud if they approve you for a loan that you cannot pay back in a timely manner. This normally happens when the lender gets a portion of the money for approving you of the loan and they don’t care if the buyer is able to pay in full or not.
What Happens If Bank Fraud Is Committed?
In the cases of bank fraud, there are several different ways the case will end up, and none of them is anything you want to experience. People who commit bank fraud can be placed in a federal prison for up to 30 years, or they can get fined up to $1 million dollars if you are in a situation where you have become a rogue trader. In most cases, you will be required to pay back all of the money that you got through these illegal ways.
How Do You Defend Against Bank Fraud?
When a prosecutor accuses you of bank fraud, there has to be evidence of your intent to do something that you know is illegal. For example, if you were to write a check thinking that you had the money in your account to cover it but the check bounced, this is not fraud because your intent was not evil. If, however, you write this check knowing that there isn’t any money and or by using money that you stole to cover the cost of it. If you borrowed money and were working towards paying it back when the check bounces, you must show evidence of that so it does not look like you stole money.
You might be able to say that you were being forced into committing bank fraud and you may end up getting a plea bargain which will help keep your fines and other punishments to a minimum. If you are respectful and cooperate with officials handling the case, there is a chance that you will be let go without having to pay any penalties.
The main thing to remember is that the court will be looking for two things – a solid paper trail that shows evidence of what you were (or were not) involved in, and you to respect them throughout the process.
Will Having An Attorney Help Me Out If I Am Accused?
Because of the severe punishments associated with this crime, you will want to hire an attorney to help you through the case. The attorney will go over everything that was used to convict you of the crime and do whatever they can to help get your name cleared. The attorney will also help to get a jury that will sympathize with you and your case and hopefully help you in the end. Having a jury that is understanding and sees that you were wrongfully accused will help if you are trying to end with a plea bargain instead of jail time or a high fine.
In a court hearing, there are often things thrown across the courtroom that are negative and make the guilty party look like a terrible person. Another added benefit of having someone to help you through this legal process is that the attorney will do everything in their power to only speak positively about you and the case in front of the court. In some cases, the judge might ask you to defend yourself and to state your side of what happened, but you are not required to do this. If the jury seems to be against you already, it might be in your best interest to keep your mouth shut and let the attorney handle things. Afterall, this is what you are paying them to do for you!
If you are accused of committing bank fraud, whether it is a wrongful accusation or actually something you did, you need to know how serious the situation at hand is. If not handled by professionals, you could end up in jail for the majority of your life or left with a fine that is nearly impossible to pay back. Either way, hiring an NYC Bank Fraud Lawyer might help save you from a lot of heartache and stress. While it might be an expensive route to take, it is important to protect yourself and your rights as you handle this sticky case. The attorney’s job is to protect you and help you get the best case scenario for what you did to commit the crime.