Two Southern Florida residents were arrested recently and accused of perpetrating a scheme to divert funds from the Department of Economic Opportunity to bank accounts which they controlled. There were 22 bank accounts associated with their name, according to the arrest warrant, that were the final deposit accounts of the alleged transfers. The couple was charged with fraud and lodged in the Broward County jail on $50,000 bond.
These types of cases are not necessarily rare with any government agency, including the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity, but they are most often computer hacker attacks from the outside that gain access to the system and transfer funds to an external account under their control. The arrest record did not state that the Ft. Lauderdale couple had been identified by the former Department of Economic Opportunity employee who had been arrested the prior week in Orlando. They were only arrested in connection with the case.
The proposed scheme began when the initial arrested defendants had entered the Department of Economic Opportunity account database and reactivated expired accounts in order to submit hundreds of claims for re-employment benefits. Only one of the couple was a former Department of Economic Opportunity employee, according to the police report, but both were arrested for fraud. There was a reported total of approximately $190,000 transferred to the directed bank accounts.
Experienced and Respected Criminal Defense
The potential for a complicated case is clearly present in this charge, as there are several questionable factors. It is obvious that each defendant will need representation from an attorney like the criminal defense lawyers at Hassett & Associates who understand how to craft a comprehensive defense for fraud charges of any type. Each individual in this case is entitled to their own representation, and competing versions of the events are very possible. The methods used to access the evidence may also be problematic. Fraud is a very serious charge, and many times it can occur in the digital economic sphere. Having a solid and effective defense attorney like Hassett & Associates means that your legal rights will be aggressively protected in all phases of the prosecution process.
