Embezzlement is defined by law as “the fraudulent appropriation of property by a person to whom such property has been entrusted, or into whose hands it has lawfully come”. Two federal statutes that specifically address embezzlement, Title 18 U.S.C. §§ 656 and 657 also apply to a financial institution insider who embezzles funds or property of a financial institution or its holding company.

While embezzlement charges are brought in a variety of cases, the most common scenario does involve insiders accused of fraud – usually in conjunction with misapplication, conspiracy, mail and wire fraud, and other charges.

Our New York City embezzlement defense lawyers have many decades of combined experience defending white collar and other fraud related cases. Amongst our clients in embezzlement and accounting fraud cases in New York are:

• Accountants accused of using their position to embezzle funds from their employers;
• Bookkeepers charged with fixing the books to steal money;
• Bank tellers charged with stealing funds from accounts or from the bank;
• Financial Institution Employees who are charged with either embezzling funds from an employer or stealing money from client accounts;
• Bid Estimators investigated for bid rigging or public corruption.

We have the necessary resources and experience to mount strong defense in an accounting fraud or embezzlement case. The earlier we are involved in the case, the better chances your defense has.

In order to secure conviction under an embezzlement statute, the prosecution must prove that the accused had lawful possession, either actual or constructive, of the property in question.

Challenging actual or constructive possession is one of the theories used in defending federal embezzlement cases.

Federal criminal investigations take time. As soon as you find out that you may be the target of federal fraud investigation for accounting fraud or  embezzlement, contact our New York white collar defense attorneys for a confidential evaluation of your case.