In the State of Florida, the organized
theft of property can be charged as organized scheme to defraud.
Under Florida law, a "scheme to defraud" means a systematic,
ongoing course of conduct with intent to defraud one or more persons,
or with intent to obtain property from one or more persons by false or
fraudulent pretenses, representations, or promises or willful misrepresentations
of a future act.
In other words, an organized scheme to defraud may involve just one person,
or a group of people. The allegation in an organized scheme to defraud
case is that the person, or group of people, had formulated a plan by
which to obtain money or property from others by the use of fraudulent
practices.
An organized scheme to defraud can be carried out a number of ways. It
can be a group of people who manufacture false checks and then cash them
around the county at various banks and check-cashing locations. It can
be a person or group of people who devise an internet scheme by which
to obtain other peoples' money.
Organized scheme to defraud is a state charge, but federal charges may
also be filed.
Additionally, if you are charged with organized scheme to defraud, you
may also face other charges such as
grand theft (the degree will be based on the alleged amount of money) or
uttering a forged instrument (if the alleged scheme to defraud involved check-cashing).
Organized scheme to defraud is a felony. Under Florida law, any person
who engages in a scheme to defraud and obtains property thereby is guilty
of organized fraud, punishable as follows:
1. If the amount of property obtained has an aggregate value of $50,000
or more, the violator is guilty of a felony of the first degree, punishable
by a maximum of 30 years in prison.
2. If the amount of property obtained has an aggregate value of $20,000
or more, but less than $50,000, the violator is guilty of a felony of
the second degree, punishable by a maximum of 15 years in prison.
3. If the amount of property obtained has an aggregate value of less than
$20,000, the violator is guilty of a felony of the third degree, punishable
by a maximum of 5 years in prison.
Additionally, any person who engages in a scheme to defraud and, in furtherance
of that scheme, communicates with any person with intent to obtain property
from that person is guilty, for each such act of communication, of communications
fraud, punishable as follows:
1. If the value of property obtained or endeavored to be obtained by the
communication is valued at $300 or more, the violator is guilty of a third
degree felony, punishable by a maximum of 5 years in prison.
2. If the value of the property obtained or endeavored to be obtained by
the communication is valued at less than $300, the violator is guilty
of a misdemeanor of the first degree, punishable by a maximum of 364 days
in county jail.
Organized scheme to defraud is rarely charged on its own. As I mentioned
earlier, each alleged act of theft qualifies as its own charge. So if
the State Attorney's Office claims that your "scheme" resulted
in 5 separate thefts of $5,000, you can be charged with 5 counts of grand
theft in the third-degree (for each act of theft), as well as 1 count
of organized scheme to defraud in the second-degree, because the total
amount of allegedly stolen money is greater than $20,000.
So now you face a maximum of 40 years if each count is sentenced consecutively.
Organized scheme to defraud is a serious economic crime, and is often handled
by experienced economic crimes prosecutors in the Miami-Dade State Attorney's
Office and the Broward State Attorney's Office.
I practice criminal defense in Miami-Dade County and in Broward County.
I am also a
former Miami-Dade prosecutor with experience prosecuting organized scheme to defraud cases.
If you are being investigated, or have already been arrested and charged with organized scheme to defraud,
call me to discuss your options.