Fraud is a serious offense, and the white-collar crimes of bank fraud and tax fraud can result in severe state and federal penalties. Have you been charged with bank or tax fraud in Chicago? Then you should immediately speak to a Chicago federal criminal attorney at the Law Offices of Vadim A. Glozman.
Bank fraud is an illegal act that is done to obtain money or property from a bank or financial institution. As with any type of fraud, this crime involves a plan where the offender tries to obtain something of value from the financial institution by deception.
Federal law defines bank fraud as any deception to defraud the bank. The financial organization may be a bank or credit union that is federally insured. It also may be a mortgage lender or Federal Reserve bank. Bank fraud also may be intended to defraud bank customers. Some of the most common types of bank fraud are money laundering, forging a loan application, and writing bad checks. People who are accused of bank fraud may be investigated and prosecuted by the state of Illinois or federal prosecutors.
Writing a bad check is one of the most common bank frauds. One scam is called check kiting where the person writes a check to a bank for cash. However, the bank account does not have enough funds because of too many debits or checks. Another bank fraud is a forgery that involves turning in an altered check for cash. In this scam, a check may be stolen from the mail. Then the criminal forges the person’s signature on the check to get the funds.
Uninsured bank deposits are another common source of bank fraud crime. Some more extensive frauds involved unlicensed and uninsured banks taking large deposits while pretending to be legal financial organizations.
The state or federal penalties for bank fraud are often severe. For example, if you are convicted of knowingly engaging in a scheme to defraud a bank, you may be fined up to $1 million. Also, you can face a federal prison sentence of up to 30 years.
State and federal prosecutors must show that the defendant committed intentional fraud. Also, the defendant must have been aware he was getting money or property by deception.
Defending against bank fraud charges is difficult but possible. The best defense by a federal criminal defense lawyer is convincing the jury that they did not mean to defraud the bank or customers.
Tax fraud and tax evasion in Illinois are serious crimes. Because there are many types of taxes at the state and federal levels, there are many categories of tax fraud. Some include failure to file a tax return, evasion of payment, filing a false return, and tax evasion of assessment taxes.
Penalties for tax fraud vary greatly because of the many state and federal laws involved. In most cases, the government will assess a monetary penalty, and they may include an interest rate and fee for the time in which taxes were not paid. There are two tiers for failing to file a tax return.
First is Tier 1, where the lesser of $250 or 2% of the required tax that is due. If the return was filed on time but cannot be processed, you have 30 days to file a correct return before you must pay the penalty.
The second is Tier 2. If you fail to file a tax return within 30 days of getting a non-filing notice, another penalty will be imposed, which is either $250 or 2% of the due tax. In addition, there can be another penalty of up to $5,000, which is assessed even if there is no tax due.
You also can receive a prison sentence for tax fraud or tax evasion cases. Penalties vary greatly. The sentencing range is listed in the federal sentencing guidelines. So, the answer to how long you can go to jail for tax fraud or tax evasion is in the guidelines. The range is decided with a numeric system based on the offense’s severity. Your previous criminal history also matters.
The federal sentencing guidelines show 43 levels for sending someone to jail for tax fraud and related fraud. The more serious the crime and money involved, the lengthier the prison sentence can be.
Your criminal history also will dictate how much jail time you will do. A repeat offender will always receive a harsher prison sentence. It is essential to point out that these are advisory guidelines. The judge can sentence you above or below the stated range in the guidelines.
When the tax fraud jail term is determined, what matters the most is the tax loss to the state or federal government. The guidelines state that the tax loss is the total loss that was the purpose of the offense. This loss would have been to the government if the fraud was successful.
You can agree to the tax loss if you take a plea deal. However, if the tax loss is still being debated and is difficult to calculate, the tax amount is assumed to be 28% of your gross plus 100% of the false claims and credits that were used to underreport income.
The average prison term for tax fraud and tax evasion is three to five years. The longest sentence for tax fraud and tax evasion is usually five years. You will also have to pay financial penalties and jail time.
If you are charged with bank fraud or tax fraud in Chicago, you need excellent legal representation as soon as possible. The Chicago federal criminal attorneys at the Law Offices of Vadim A. Glozman can help if you face a white-collar crime charge. Contact our Chicago federal criminal attorneys today for a free consultation.