Wire fraud involves deceitful actions intended to steal money from a victim through a pre-planned scheme. Though both forms of fraud have similar elements, the largest difference is the method of communication. In contrast, wire fraud can be committed through any form of technological communication. Mail fraud only exists in a physical, written format.
Regardless of the methods, wire and mail fraud are federal offenses with serious fines and jail time. If you’re accused of wire fraud, immediately contact an Orlando federal mail and wire fraud lawyer experienced in fraudulent activity to begin planning your defense.
When committing wire fraud, scammers use any combination of technology to convince their victims to send money or credit card information. This can be by telephone call, email, text, social media message, or even fax machine. To be convicted of wire fraud, the prosecution needs to prove:
In order to convict you of wire fraud, the prosecution must prove a scheme was prepared before contacting the victim. This means you planned to use misleading or outright false statements as a means of defrauding the victim. These statements can be in the form of a promise, exchange, or false emergency.
It’s not enough that you planned on using deceitful language. The prosecution must also prove that you intentionally acted on the plan to defraud someone. This can be seemingly innocent, like sending the message under your profile instead of your partner’s. This doesn’t mean the scheme needs to be successful, only that there was clear intent to conduct the fraudulent scheme.
Committing wire fraud must involve some form of electronic communication, even if that communication was only used to develop the scheme. By using technological communication, the planning and commitment of wire fraud crosses state lines and becomes a federal crime.
Whereas wire fraud is committed by crossing state lines through electronic communication, mail fraud requires a physical letter to be mailed to the victim. Mail and wire fraud charges are often intertwined with each other, as mail fraud can be committed even if the scheme was conceived over electronic communication.
While the United States Postal Inspection Service divides mail fraud into several categories, the most common scams are listed below.
In order to be convicted of mail fraud, the prosecution must prove two things: (1) that you developed a scheme to commit mail fraud through one of the above means, and (2) that you went through with your scheme intentionally. This process is very similar to accusations of wire fraud, so the two crimes are often charged together.
The last thing you want to do is take on a federal wire or mail fraud case in Orlando without representation. Any fraud accusation can do serious harm to your name and reputation, which is why we take these charges seriously. With nearly 30 years of experience in defense law, Umansky Law Firm offers a unique approach to your defense against fraud allegations. Let us provide you with the support and information you need during your case.
Feel free to contact us or fill out our online contact form here. We’re happy to help.
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