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Charged with Wire Fraud in Los Angeles? Federal Prosecutors Are Already Building Their Case

Wire fraud under 18 U.S.C. 1343 is one of the most broadly applied and aggressively prosecuted federal statutes in the Central District of California. What makes it particularly dangerous is how prosecutors use it — every email, every phone call, and every electronic transaction in an alleged scheme can be charged as a separate count each carrying up to 20 years in federal prison. A case involving a handful of communications can expose you to decades of combined sentencing before a single witness testifies. If you are under investigation or have been charged with wire fraud in Los Angeles do not speak to federal agents without an attorney present. The Law Offices of Arash Hashemi has been defending clients against federal charges in Los Angeles for over 20 years. Attorney Hashemi is a Los Angeles wire fraud lawyer who will personally review your case, analyze your exposure, and begin building your defense from the moment you call. Call (310) 448-1529 or contact our office today for a free confidential consultation.

Wire Fraud Under 18 U.S.C. 1343 — What the Statute Actually Covers

Wire fraud under 18 U.S.C. 1343 is the use of any interstate electronic communication including phone calls, emails, text messages, wire transfers, or internet activity in furtherance of a scheme to defraud. The statute is written broadly enough that federal prosecutors apply it to an enormous range of conduct including business disputes, online transactions, real estate deals, investment arrangements, and employment relationships where one party is alleged to have made false representations.

To convict you of wire fraud the prosecution must prove four elements beyond a reasonable doubt. There must have been a scheme to defraud. You must have participated in it knowingly and with specific intent to defraud. An interstate wire communication must have been used in furtherance of the scheme. And the scheme must have involved a material misrepresentation that affected the victim’s decision. The breadth of the statute means that business transactions that went wrong, disputes over promised services, and failed investments are all routinely charged as wire fraud when a federal investigation decides to pursue them.

Federal Wire Fraud Penalties

  • Up to 20 years in federal prison per count — and prosecutors charge each email or phone call as a separate count
  • Up to 30 years per count when the offense involved a financial institution or was connected to a federally declared disaster
  • Fines up to $250,000 per count for individuals
  • Mandatory restitution to victims for the full amount of the loss
  • Asset forfeiture of all property and funds traceable to the alleged fraud
  • Federal sentences are served without parole — defendants serve at least 85 percent of the sentence imposed
  • Permanent federal felony record affecting employment, professional licensing, and immigration status

Because wire fraud counts are frequently stacked the total sentencing exposure in a multi-count indictment can reach decades even for defendants with no prior criminal history. Understanding the full scope of what you are facing from day one is one of the most important things a Los Angeles wire fraud lawyer does in the earliest stages of representation.

How Our Los Angeles Wire Fraud Lawyer Defends Your Case

Challenging Intent to Defraud

The most powerful defense in most wire fraud cases is the absence of specific intent to defraud. A business deal that fell through, an investment that failed, a disagreement over what was promised, and a misrepresentation made in good faith are not wire fraud. Our firm builds the intent defense through your communications, your business records, and the full context of the relationship between the parties showing that what the prosecution calls a fraudulent scheme was a legitimate transaction that went wrong.

Good Faith Defense

If you believed your representations were accurate, acted on advice of counsel or financial professionals, or had a genuine good faith belief that your conduct was lawful, the prosecution cannot establish the knowing and intentional fraud required for a conviction. Our firm documents your state of mind at the time of the alleged conduct through communications, professional advice received, and the business context surrounding every representation the prosecution intends to challenge.

Suppression of Electronic Evidence

Wire fraud cases are built on emails, phone records, financial data, and digital communications. Federal investigators obtain this evidence through search warrants, subpoenas, and court orders that must comply with constitutional requirements. When those requirements were not met our firm files suppression motions to exclude the evidence. Removing key communications from a wire fraud prosecution often fundamentally changes what the government can prove.

Attacking the Materiality of the Alleged Misrepresentation

Wire fraud requires that the alleged misrepresentation was material meaning it actually influenced the victim’s decision. When the victim would have proceeded with the transaction regardless of the statement at issue or when the statement was an opinion, a prediction, or an expression of intent rather than a verifiable fact our firm challenges materiality directly as an element the prosecution has not proven.

Challenging the Scope of the Alleged Scheme

Federal prosecutors frequently charge wire fraud as part of a broader conspiracy adding RICO, money laundering, and conspiracy counts to maximize sentencing exposure. Our firm challenges the scope of the alleged scheme and our client’s role within it at every stage limiting the number of counts and the sentencing exposure the prosecution can sustain through the evidence it actually has.

Contact a Los Angeles Wire Fraud Lawyer Today

If you are under federal investigation or have been charged with wire fraud in Los Angeles the time to act is now. Federal cases are built over extended periods and by the time you are contacted the government has typically already gathered substantial evidence. Do not speak to investigators without an attorney present and do not wait.

Contact our office today for a free confidential consultation with a Los Angeles wire fraud lawyer who will analyze the charges, explain your exposure, and begin building your defense from day one.

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We are conveniently located in the Westside Towers serving clients facing wire fraud and federal fraud charges across Los Angeles, Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, the San Fernando Valley, Long Beach, and all surrounding communities. Your defense starts the moment you call.