Have You Been Charged With Identity Theft?
Prosecutors and the courts take identity theft charges seriously. Federal identity theft charges carry a two-year mandatory minimum sentence. When you are dealing with an accusation of identity theft, you are dealing with the power and resources of federal law enforcement.
Your best chance at staying out of prison on identity theft charges is to retain a sophisticated defense attorney with extensive experience in federal court. Contact The Law Office of Jeffrey Chabrowe as soon as possible after getting arrested for proven defense strategies that protect your rights. Call 212-235-1510.
What Is Identity Theft?
Many of these cases can be broken down into individual or group conspiracy charges. Further, they can be broken down by what type of theft occurs. In some, personal information is used to create a credit card and clean out a person’s bank account. In others, a credit card is created using someone else’s information and is used to make numerous high-end purchases that are then resold to make money.
People often assume that identity theft is a crime that takes place on the internet only, but this is not true. The law criminalized identity theft before the internet existed. For example, it is possible to commit identity theft by stealing another person’s mail or sensitive documents and using that information to pose as that person and obtain credit.
Have You Been Accused Of Being Part Of An Identity Theft Conspiracy?
Conspiracy charges are designed to capture all active participants of a criminal enterprise. Everyone who is part of the group, no matter how small their contribution, is considered to be as guilty as the main actors.
Thus, if you participate in an identity theft scheme at any point, you could be charged, no matter how brief or minor your involvement was. Examples of things that could lead to a charge include:
- Passing along a victim’s address or phone number
- Discussing an identity theft scheme that someone else in the conversation later takes some step to carry out
- Allowing other conspirators to use your computer
Internet crimes such as phishing (tricking someone into sharing their personal data via email) and smishing (doing the same thing over text messages) are among the most common forms of identity theft. These schemes typically involve posing as the victim’s bank, credit card company, utility company or other trusted entity and manipulating the victim into providing their name, address, Social Security number and other personal information. This data often ends up for sale on the dark web.
Other schemes involve creating a convincing fake of a company’s website and directing victims to it. Clicking on the link installs malware on the victim’s device that scrapes passwords and other information.
Often, prosecutors charge groups of people with identity theft as part of a conspiracy. Not every person who is charged with an identity theft conspiracy is necessarily an actual participant. People are sometimes unjustly caught up in the wide nets used to catch conspirators.
If you are facing identity theft conspiracy charges, we can build a strong defense that can separate you from the conspiracy and create positive results for you.
Skilled Defense From A Former Manhattan Prosecutor
At The Law Office of Jeffrey Chabrowe, we provide our clients with the intelligent and aggressive defense they should have against identity theft charges. Attorney Jeffrey Chabrowe is a former prosecutor with the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office. He understands how to build effective defenses against the potentially complex cases on which identity theft charges can be based. He has an extensive background with these types of cases and understands what evidence is necessary to overcome identity theft charges, including more complex federal charges.
Jeffrey Chabrowe has almost 20 years of criminal law experience. His years of defending clients, combined with his understanding of how a prosecutor might approach your case, allow him to build a defense that can anticipate issues and prepare to win.
To learn more about attorney Jeffrey Chabrowe’s record of success in high-profile cases, refer to our In the Press page.
Identity Theft Defense Lawyer Serving Manhattan And All Of The New York City Area
Do not face identity theft charges without a defense that has a record of success against these charges. Turn to The Law Office of Jeffrey Chabrowe. To schedule a consultation, call 212-235-1510 or contact us online.