The
Economic Crimes Unit investigates and prosecutes non
violent felony property Crimes. The bulk of the Unit’s
cases involve theft, misapplication of fiduciary
property, insurance fraud, mortgage fraud, money
laundering, tampering with governmental records,
securing execution of a document by deception, identity
theft, and computer crime. These offenses are commonly
referred to as White Collar Crimes. The Unit is also
called upon to investigate and prosecute cases involving
public corruption. The Unit is staffed by four
attorneys, four investigators, two forensic financial
analyst[s], a litigation support specialist and a
secretary.
In 2008, the Economic Crimes Unit recovered and obtained
in excess of $1,620,000 in restitution payments and
orders. Additionally, the Unit’s prosecutions resulted
in fines and forfeitures in excess of $100,000. It also
opened over 300 investigations.
The Economic Crimes Unit receives complaints from law
enforcement agencies, as well as the public. If a
complaint warrants, it is assigned to an investigator
and an attorney for review and investigation.
Investigations can be time consuming due to the volume
of records required to be examined and the time required
to obtain documents from banks and other financial
institutions.
Often, an investigation reveals that proof of a criminal
offense beyond a reasonable doubt is not possible. In
those situations, the complaining parties may be advised
to consult private attorneys in order to pursue civil
remedies. The Unit’s attorneys are not permitted to
represent nor advise citizens in private lawsuits. A
breach of contract does not constitute a criminal
offense but may give rise to a civil claim for damages.
In cases warranting criminal prosecution, the matter
will be presented to a grand jury. If the grand jury
votes to indict an offender, the indictment will be
returned to one of the district courts in Tarrant County
with criminal jurisdiction. The Economic Crimes Unit
attorneys conduct the prosecution and subsequent trial.
The
preparation and prosecution of a white collar offense
involves extensive investigation and preparation. Often
the trial of a case of this type may require more than
100 exhibits. The Unit utilizes multi-media projectors
and computers for courtroom use. This equipment enables
jurors and judges to effectively review vast amounts of
materials in a shorter length of time. Demonstrative
displays including charts, graphs and flow charts are
created by the forensic financial analyst to summarize
voluminous documents required to substantiate an
offender’s guilt.
Often, defendants engaging in economic crimes are first
time offenders. Unit attorneys make every effort to
secure restitution payment to the victim through the use
of community supervision or probation. However, this is
not possible in every case. Punishment is often decided
by a judge or a jury after a guilty verdict. |