The U.S. Attorney's Office in Miami, Florida announced the prosecution of 10 men for securities and investment fraud related offenses. These prosecutions follow a multi-agency task force that includes elements from the FBI, IRS, U.S. Secret Service, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, SEC, FDIC, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), FTC, and the Florida Office of Financial Regulation.
As a criminal attorney in Fort Lauderdale, I can tell you that securities fraud prosecutions are becoming more and more prevalent in South Florida.
Using an investigative model that seemed to work in the prosecution of health care fraud and mortgage fraud cases, the task force slowly built cases against the following people:
- Jack Freedman
- Richard Greene
- Peter Santamaria
- Mark Balbirer
- Sheldon Simon
- Jeffrey L. Schultz
- Stephen F. Molinari
- Thomas Gaffney
- Scott Haire
- Douglas P. Martin
Since a lot of these cases involved Federal agents acting in an undercover capacity and the use of confidential informants who most likely wore recording devices, odds are the likelihood of winning at trial is not great enough to take the risk.
Nothing speaks louder and clearer than a recorded conversation.
That said, the best defense in these cases may be one of mitigation and acceptance of responsibility. Investigating the clients' background for any possible basis for a downward variance may be the best move. However, such decisions can only be made after a careful evaluation of the evidence and case facts is completed by a criminal attorney.
All in all, it will be interesting to see how these prosecutions end. The Government has put a lot of resources into these cases. The outcomes of which are yet to be determined.