can i be charged for fraud?

[Pennie]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? MN

if an employee in charge of purchasing is fired and said company after the fact investigates credit card purchases - can the fired employee be charged for fraud? And if so, can this be done without the employer first seeking receipts of charges? And finally, how to differentiate between valid and fraudulent purchases?

 

[Proserpina]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? MN

if an employee in charge of purchasing is fired and said company after the fact investigates credit card purchases - can the fired employee be charged for fraud? And if so, can this be done without the employer first seeking receipts of charges? And finally, how to differentiate between valid and fraudulent purchases?

If a report is made and the state thinks there's enough evidence to get a conviction then yes, the employee can be charged.

Let's back up a second though. What exactly happened?

 

[Pennie]

it is a long story but here goes: about 2 years ago, I covered up a payment of an invoice for a co-worker. our tyrant of a boss made changes to a document she had already ordered and she was worried he would fire her so instead of paying one invoice with the 1st & revised order on it, I made it into 2 invoices and paid them separately - it all came to a head recently and she was fired for it. I quit the following day on principal as I was the one who manipulated the system and at the very least should have been fired along with her if not exclusively. Not to mention no theft took place, the vendor proved we paid them, not ourselves, with the duplicated invoice.

Anyway, a co-worker informed me today that they have been investigating us both and are trying to build a fraud case against my co-worker. Police have been there but everyone is sworn to secrecy for fear of their jobs. that is all well & good but are we allowed any information as to the investigation?

 

[swalsh411]

If you did not personally gain from this I don't see how you could be charged with anything. If the police contact you, do NOT answer any questions. I cannot stress this enough. You have nothing to lose by not talking, and potentially a lot to lose by thinking you can "just clear this up" or "tell your side of the story". No matter what the police say (and they can lie) say ONLY "I will not answer any questions without an attorney present".

 

[justalayman]

that is all well & good but are we allowed any information as to the investigation?

nope, not a single word do you have a right to hear.

 

[tranquility]

If you did not personally gain from this I don't see how you could be charged with anything. If the police contact you, do NOT answer any questions. I cannot stress this enough. You have nothing to lose by not talking, and potentially a lot to lose by thinking you can "just clear this up" or "tell your side of the story". No matter what the police say (and they can lie) say ONLY "I will not answer any questions without an attorney present".

This. Times a thousand. I do not think they would get a fraud conviction absent your statements. Don't give them to the police under any circumstances. Every single time they ask a question (other than in booking), "I'd like to speak to an attorney before any questioning."

 

[betachains]

This. Times a thousand. I do not think they would get a fraud conviction absent your statements. Don't give them to the police under any circumstances. Every single time they ask a question (other than in booking), "I'd like to speak to an attorney before any questioning."

I am curious about the logistics of this. I agree that one should never talk without a lawyer while under investigation. But, what does the attorney actually do? Does he/she reiterates that the client admits nothing? Does a lawyer add any value to the OP refusing to speak except for purely ID purposes?

 

[swalsh411]

I am curious about the logistics of this. I agree that one should never talk without a lawyer while under investigation. But, what does the attorney actually do? Does he/she reiterates that the client admits nothing? Does a lawyer add any value to the OP refusing to speak except for purely ID purposes?

You don't actually need to get an attorney to say "I'm not answering any questions without an attorney". You could also just say "I'm not answering any questions".

And yes attorneys can sometimes be useful in getting overzealous detectives to realize they don't have a solid case.

 

[dave33]

it is a long story but here goes: about 2 years ago, I covered up a payment of an invoice for a co-worker. our tyrant of a boss made changes to a document she had already ordered and she was worried he would fire her so instead of paying one invoice with the 1st & revised order on it, I made it into 2 invoices and paid them separately - it all came to a head recently and she was fired for it. I quit the following day on principal as I was the one who manipulated the system and at the very least should have been fired along with her if not exclusively. Not to mention no theft took place, the vendor proved we paid them, not ourselves, with the duplicated invoice.

Anyway, a co-worker informed me today that they have been investigating us both and are trying to build a fraud case against my co-worker. Police have been there but everyone is sworn to secrecy for fear of their jobs. that is all well & good but are we allowed any information as to the investigation?

As previously stated, you are allowed nothing. The police see you as someone who may be charged with a crime, they will share no information with you. Depending on the situation you may be charged here. You need to be especially careful. Also, as pointed out, make no statements.Do not be tricked, even if you are trying to explain how you did nothing wrong, you may be admitting to another crime. You or 99.9% of the public simply do not have the legal knowledge or experience to confidently make any statement. goodluck.