REACH OUT TO A DENVER FRAUD CRIMES DEFENSE ATTORNEY

In Colorado, a person can be charged with fraud for a variety of activities. While some charges are more serious than others, everyone has the potential to negatively impact your life if you are convicted.

If you are facing a fraud charge, it is important that you consult with one of the knowledgeable and experienced defense attorneys at Decker and Jones.

A person can be charged with forgery if they intend to defraud, complete, or alter a written instrument that may be represented as:

• Part of an issue of money, stamps, securities, or other valuable instruments issued by a government or government agency
• Part of an issue of stock, bonds, or other instruments representing interests in or claims against a corporate or other organization or its property
• A deed, will, codicil, contract, assignment, commercial instrument, promissory note, check, or other instrument which does or may evidence, create, transfer, terminate, or otherwise affect a legal right, interest, obligation, or status
• A public record or an instrument filed or required by law to be filed with a public office or public servant
• A written instrument officially issued or created by a public office, public servant, or government agency
• Part of an issue of tokens, transfers, certificates, or other articles manufactured and designed for use in transportation fees upon public conveyances, or as symbols of value usable in place of money for the purchase of property or services available to the public for compensation
• Part of an issue of lottery tickets
• A document-making implement that may be used or is used in the production of a false identification document or in the production of another document-making implement to produce false identification documents

Forgery is a class 5 felony.

A person can be charged with forgery if they intend to defraud, complete, or alter a written instrument that is not:

• Part of an issue of money, stamps, securities, or other valuable instruments issued by a government or government agency
• Part of an issue of stock, bonds, or other instruments representing interests in or claims against a corporate or other organization or its property
• A deed, will, codicil, contract, assignment, commercial instrument, promissory note, check, or other instrument which does or may evidence, create, transfer, terminate, or otherwise affect a legal right, interest, obligation, or status
• A public record or an instrument filed or required by law to be filed with a public office or public servant
• A written instrument officially issued or created by a public office, public servant, or government agency
• Part of an issue of tokens, transfers, certificates, or other articles manufactured and designed for use in transportation fees upon public conveyances, or as symbols of value usable in place of money for the purchase of property or services available to the public for compensation
• Part of an issue of lottery tickets
• A document-making implement that may be used or is used in the production of a false identification
  document or in the production of another document-making implement to produce false identification documents
• An academic record

Second-degree forgery is a class 1 misdemeanor.

A person can be charged with use of a forged academic record if they use the document to seek employment, admission to an institution of higher education, financial assistance from the institution itself or from other public or private sources of financial assistance. They may also be charged if they falsely make, complete, or alter a written instrument that purports to be, or will be represented if completed, a bona fide academic record of an institution of secondary or higher education.

Use of a forged academic record is a class 1 misdemeanor.

A person can be charged with criminal possession of a forged instrument if they possess and know a document is forged and intend to use it to defraud another person.

Criminal possession of a forged instrument is a class 6 felony.

A person can be charged with criminal simulation if they intend to defraud by making, altering, or representing any object so that it appears to have an antiquity, rarity, source or authorship, ingredient, or composition which it does not in fact have.

Criminal simulation is a class 1 misdemeanor.

A person can be charged with criminal possession of a forged instrument if they possess and know a document is forged and intend to use it to defraud another person that fits the classifications of 2nd-degree forgery.

Criminal Possession of Forgery Devices

A person can be charged with criminal possession of forgery devices if the individual:

• Knowingly makes or possesses any plate, die, or other device, apparatus, equipment, or article specifically designed for use in counterfeiting, unlawfully simulating, or otherwise forging written instruments or counterfeit marks
• Illegally possesses a genuine plate, die, or other device used in the production of written instruments or counterfeit marks, with intent to fraudulently use it
• Unlawfully makes, produces, or possesses a document-making implement knowing that it may be used or to forge documents

Criminal possession of forgery devices is a class 6 felony.

A person can be charged with criminal simulation if they intend to defraud by making, altering, or representing any object so that it appears to have an antiquity, rarity, source or authorship, ingredient, or composition which it does not in fact have.

Criminal simulation is a class 1 misdemeanor.

A person can be charged with obtaining a signature by deception if they intend to defraud a person to gain a benefit for themselves or another by causing a person to sign or execute a written document.

Obtaining signatures by deception is a class 2 misdemeanor.

A person can be charged with criminal impersonation if they assume a false or fictitious identity or legal capacity, and in that capacity:

• Marries, or pretends to marry, or to sustain the marriage relation toward another person
• Becomes bail or surety for a party in an action or proceeding, civil or criminal, before a court or officer authorized to take the bail or surety
• Confesses a judgment, or subscribes, verifies, publishes, acknowledges, or proves a written document that may be recorded and intended to be delivered as true
• Performs an act that might subject a falsely impersonated person to an action or special proceeding, civil or criminal, or to liability, charge, forfeiture, or penalty/li>
• Performs any other act with intent to unlawfully gain a benefit for themselves or another, or to injure or defraud another

Criminal impersonation is a class 6 felony.

A person can be charged with offering a false instrument for recording if they intend to defraud someone, knowing that a written instrument relating to or affecting a property or a contractual relationship contains a material false information, and presents it to a public office or employee for public recording.

Offering a false instrument for recording can be a class 5 felony or a class 1 misdemeanor.

A person can be charged with offering a false instrument for recording if they knowingly have insufficient funds and intend to defraud a person or financial institution and issues a check for the payment of services, wages, salary, commissions, labor, rent, money, property, or other thing of value. A person can also be charged with fraud by check if the individual opens a checking account, negotiable order of withdrawal account, or share draft account using false identification or an assumed name for the purpose of issuing fraudulent checks.

Fraud by check can be a class 6 felony, or a class 1 or 2 misdemeanor.

A person can be charged with offering a false instrument for recording if they purchase any personal property on credit and before paying for it, they sell, pledge, or dispose of it with intent to defraud the seller or vendor.

Purchase on credit to defraud is a class 2 misdemeanor.

A person can be charged with false financial statement offenses if they intend to defraud by:

• Making or uttering a written instrument that purports to describe the financial condition or ability to pay for himself or another which is false in some material respect and reasonably relied upon.
• Represents in writing that a written instrument purporting to describe another person’s financial condition or ability to pay as of a prior date is accurate regarding that person’s current financial condition or ability to pay, knowing the instrument to be materially false in that respect and reasonably
  relied upon.
• Upon filing an application for a financial transaction device with an issuer, knowingly makes a false statement or report, which is false in some material respect and reasonably relied upon. This can include a person’s name, occupation, financial condition, assets, or liabilities. It may also willfully and substantially overvalue any assets or omit or substantially undervalue any indebtedness for the purpose of influencing the issuer to issue a financial transaction device.

A false financial statement offense can be a class 6 felony, a class 1 or 2 misdemeanor.

A person can be charged with receiving deposits in a failing financial institution if they are an officer, manager, or other person participating in the direction of a financial institution and receive or permit the receipt of a deposit or investment, with knowledge that the institution is insolvent. A financial institution is insolvent when it is unable to pay its obligations in the ordinary or usual course of business or if its liabilities exceed its assets.

Receiving deposits in a failing financial institution is a class 6 felony.

A person can be charged with fraud in effecting sales if they, in the course of business:

• Use or possess any device for falsely determining or recording any quality or quantity
• Sell, offer, or deliver less than the represented quantity of any commodity or service
• Take or attempt to take more than the represented quantity of any commodity or service when as a buyer they furnish the weight or measure
• Sell, offer, or expose for sale an adulterated or mislabeled commodity
• Make a false or misleading statement in any advertisement regarding items or services to be sold

Fraud in effecting sales is a class 2 misdemeanor.

Unlawful Activity in the Selling of Land

A person can be charged with unlawful activity concerning the selling of land if, after selling, bartering, or disposing of any real property, or executing any bond or agreement for sale of any real property, they again sell, barter, or dispose of the same real property, or execute any bond or agreement to sell, barter or dispose of the same real property to another person.

Selling land twice is a class 5 felony.

A person can also be charged with unlawful activity concerning the selling of land if the individual makes a false representation as to his ownership interest in land.

They can also be charged if they sign a lien waiver for a construction loan and knowingly fail to pay any debts resulting from a construction agreement covered by the waiver, unless there is a bona fide dispute as to the existence or amount of the debt.

Unlawful activity concerning the selling of land can be a class 5 or 6 felony, or a class 1 misdemeanor.

A person can be charged with bait advertising if they offer property or services as part of a plan not to sell or provide the advertised property or services, or not at the price at which they were offered, or not in a sufficient quantity to meet a reasonably expected public demand, unless the quantity is specifically stated in the advertisement.

Bait advertising is a class 2 misdemeanor.

A person can be charged with money laundering if:

• They conduct or attempt to conduct a financial transaction that involves money the individual knows or believes to be the proceeds of a criminal offense or with the intent to promote the commission of a criminal offense.
• They proceed with a belief that the transaction is designed to conceal the nature of the proceeds of a criminal offense; or, to avoid a financial reporting requirement under federal law.
• They transport, transmit, or transfer money with the intent to promote the commission of a criminal offense; or with a belief that the money represents the proceeds of a criminal offense and that the transportation, transmission or transfer is designed to conceal the nature of the proceeds of a criminal offense; or, to avoid a financial reporting requirement under federal law.
• They intentionally conduct a financial transaction that is represented to be the proceeds of a criminal offense, or involving property that the individual believes to have been used to conduct or facilitate a criminal offense.

Money laundering is a class 3 felony.

A person can be charged with issuance of a bad check if they issue or pass a check knowing that the issuer does not have sufficient funds on deposit in the bank for the payment in full of the check at the time of issuance.

Issuance of a bad check is a class 3 misdemeanor.

A person can be charged with unauthorized use of a financial transaction device if they intend to defraud and use such a device for the purpose of obtaining cash, credit, property, or services or for making financial payment, and have knowledge that the financial transaction device has expired, been revoked, been cancelled, or the financial transaction device is unauthorized.

Unauthorized use of a financial transaction device can be a class 3 or 5 felony, or a class 1 misdemeanor.

A person can be charged with equity skimming of real property if they acquire an interest in real property that is encumbered by a loan secured by a mortgage or deed of trust and then rents the property out while collecting proceeds of the rent but failing to pay the mortgage.

Equity skimming of real property is a class 5 felony.

A person can be charged with equity skimming of a vehicle if they know the vehicle is subject to a security interest, lien, or lease, and accepts possession or exercises any control over the vehicle in exchange for consideration. This can include:

• Obtaining or exercising control over the vehicle and then selling or leasing the vehicle to a third party without first obtaining written authorization from the secured creditor, lessor, or lienholder.
• Arranging the sale or lease of the vehicle to a third party without first obtaining written authorization from the secured creditor, lessor, or lienholder.
• Failing to determine whether payments are due to the secured creditor, lienholder, or lessor and failing to apply all funds received for any lease or sale of the vehicle toward the satisfaction of any outstanding payment due to the secured creditor, lienholder, or lessor.

Equity skimming of a vehicle is a class 6 felony.