Fraud is generally considered a type of white collar crime. White collar crimes are nonviolent crimes involving financial deception. "Fraud" is a relatively general term that applies to a number of individual, specific crimes that all share common characteristics.
Criminal Intent
In Minnesota, for an act to be considered fraud there must have been an element of intent. More specifically, "fraud" can only apply to acts involving a false representation of a past or present material fact, that is able to be known, by a representor who either knew the representation to be false or else asserted the fact without knowledge that it was true with the intent to induce another person to act on the false representation. The representor must have actually induced the other person to act on the false representation, and the other person must have both relied on that representation when acting and suffered damages due to that reliance.
Types of Fraud Charges
A representor can commit fraud in many numbers of ways. Some of the most common charges include:
- Bank fraud
- Financial transaction card fraud
- Fraud in obtaining credit
- Insurance fraud
- Internet fraud
- Lawful gambling fraud
- Mail fraud
- Medical assistance fraud
- Mortgage fraud
- Securities fraud
- Lottery fraud
- Tax fraud
- Telecommunications and information services fraud
- Wire fraud
These are just the most common, and are all examples of specific crimes included under the general category of "fraud."
Defending a Criminal Charge of Fraud
If you are facing a charge of fraud, in order to meet the definition of the crime, the prosecutor must be able to prove that you knew the information you were providing was false and that you acted with intent. You need a criminal defense attorney who has experience preparing thorough defenses for clients charged with fraud and intentional misrepresentation. Call an experienced attorney in your jurisdiction today.
