NCJ Number
223452
Journal
American Criminal Law Review Volume: 45 Issue: 2 Dated: Spring 2008 Pages: 531-578
Date Published
2008
Length
48 pages
Annotation
This article reviews the development and application of three Federal criminal statutes that govern offenses by or against financial institutions.
Abstract
Section II examines the Federal Bank Fraud Statute (BFS), the purpose of which is to protect the interests of the Federal Government as an insurer of financial institutions. The BFS covers a variety of offenses against financial institutions, including check-kiting, check forging, false statements and nondisclosures on loan applications, stolen checks, and unauthorized use of automated teller machines. In order to obtain a conviction under the BFS, the government must show that the defendant knowingly executed or attempted to execute a scheme or artifice to either defraud or--through false or fraudulent pretenses, representations, or promises--obtain the monies or other property of a financial institution. The article also examines possible defenses of custody or control, good faith, and multiplicity of the indictment. Penalties and supplemental enforcement mechanisms under the BFS are also discussed. The article next discusses criminal penalties under section 1818(j) of 12 U.S. Code, which criminalizes the further participation of institution-affiliated parties (IAPs) in the affairs of an FDIC-insured institution after the IAPs administrative removal. The article discusses the scope, elements, and penalties of section 1818(j). Another major section of this article focuses on the Federal Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), which addresses the use of financial institutions for "laundering" unreported income and obtaining funds illegally. The BSA requires that financial institutions maintain "certain reports or records where they have a high degree of usefulness in criminal, tax, or regulatory investigations or proceedings, or in the conduct of intelligence of counterintelligence activities, including analysis, to protect against international terrorism." Issues discussed in this section include record-keeping requirements and reporting requirements. 367 notes