Miami Federal Fraud Defense Attorney
The Law Office of Nayib Hassan, P.A. defends business owners, executives, professionals, and individuals in Miami and across Miami-Dade County who are under investigation or indicted for federal fraud offenses. The firm also represents clients throughout South Florida and in federal courts around the country. A Miami federal fraud defense attorney is often called long before an arrest, when a grand jury subpoena arrives, a bank freezes an account, or an agent asks for a “quick conversation” about a transaction.
Fraud is the most common federal charging theory in the Southern District of Florida, and it is also the most elastic. A single set of facts, such as a loan application, a billing practice, or a series of wire transfers, can be charged as wire fraud, bank fraud, false statements, conspiracy, or money laundering, sometimes all at once. What separates a lawful business decision from a federal felony is usually intent, and intent is exactly what the government has to prove from paper trails, emails, and the testimony of people who may be cooperating to help themselves.
Fraud cases also differ from other federal prosecutions in how punishment is calculated. The alleged dollar loss drives the advisory Sentencing Guidelines range, which means the fight over numbers often matters as much as the fight over guilt. That is where a careful defense can change an outcome long before a jury is ever seated.
What Separates Federal Fraud From Florida Theft and Fraud Charges
People often assume a fraud accusation will be handled like a theft case in state court. It will not. Florida’s grand theft statute ties the offense class to the value of the property: $750 or more but under $20,000 is a third-degree felony, $20,000 up to $100,000 is a second-degree felony, and $100,000 or more is a first-degree felony punishable by up to 30 years. Those are real exposures, but they come with state limitation periods, state sentencing rules, and a state prosecutor’s office.
A federal fraud case operates on a different track. Investigators from agencies such as the FBI, IRS Criminal Investigation, the HHS Office of Inspector General, and the SBA Office of Inspector General may spend months or years gathering subpoenaed records and cooperating witnesses. The case is prosecuted by an Assistant United States Attorney, sentenced under the United States Sentencing Guidelines, and served without parole. A person who “only” faced a state theft allegation might see a plea to probation; the same conduct charged federally can mean a guideline range measured in years.
The two systems can also overlap. Some conduct, such as insurance or benefits fraud, can draw both state and federal attention, and decisions made in one forum can affect the other. Anyone contacted by either should treat the first conversation as consequential.
Why Choose the Law Office of Nayib Hassan, P.A. for Federal Fraud Defense
The Law Office of Nayib Hassan, P.A. is a Miami-area federal criminal defense firm that represents clients throughout Miami-Dade County, Broward, Palm Beach, and Monroe Counties, and in the Southern District of Florida. Attorney and founder Nayib Hassan is a former Broward County Assistant State Attorney with more than 20 years inside the criminal justice system. As a prosecutor he handled thousands of cases and tried hundreds to verdict, which means he knows how charging decisions are made and how the government weighs risk before it commits to a trial.
Mr. Hassan is admitted to the Southern, Middle, and Northern Districts of Florida, the federal court for the District of Columbia, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. He has defended clients in federal courts in Florida, the Southern District of New York, Texas, Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, South Carolina, and California, and matters involving Colombia, Mexico, the Bahamas, Ecuador, and Cuba. Recognitions include the Top 100 Trial Lawyers designation from The National Trial Lawyers and a 10.0 Avvo rating. He serves on the Miami board of the Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, teaches as an adjunct professor at St. Thomas University, and has presented continuing legal education on federal court practice to other defense attorneys. His cases have been covered by The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, CNN, and the Miami Herald.
In multi-defendant federal cases, Mr. Hassan has obtained dismissals and has secured one of the lowest sentences among all codefendants for a client. Fraud cases frequently involve several defendants pointing at one another, so that experience matters. The firm limits its caseload so the attorney handling your case is the one you speak with, he is fluent in Spanish and speaks directly with clients and families, and the firm is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Confidential consultations are available for anyone who needs to talk through an investigation or indictment.
Federal Fraud Charges We Defend in Miami
- Wire Fraud and Mail Fraud: The workhorse statutes of federal fraud prosecution. Any email, bank transfer, or mailed document that furthered an alleged scheme can supply the federal hook, and each use can be charged as a separate count.
- Bank Fraud and Loan Application Fraud: Allegations that a borrower overstated income, assets, or purpose to a federally insured lender. These cases often turn on what the applicant actually knew and what a broker or accountant prepared.
- PPP, EIDL and SBA Loan Fraud: Pandemic relief cases remain active in South Florida. Charges can include wire fraud, bank fraud, false statements to a lender or the SBA, aggravated identity theft, and money laundering, and the limitations period for these loans was extended to 10 years.
- Healthcare and Medicare Fraud: Miami-Dade has long been a center of national enforcement. Physicians, pharmacy owners, clinic operators, home health agencies, equipment suppliers, and billing staff can be investigated over billing, referrals, or kickback arrangements.
- Securities Fraud and Investment Schemes: Accusations that investors were misled about risk, returns, or the use of their money. Documents, investor communications, and expert accounting analysis drive these cases.
- Identity Theft and Credit Card Fraud: Charges involving use of another person’s identifying information or access devices, sometimes layered on top of a broader fraud count.
- Tax Fraud: Investigations led by IRS Criminal Investigation, usually centered on whether an understatement was willful rather than a mistake or a good-faith disagreement over the law.
- Money Laundering Tied to Fraud: Prosecutors frequently add laundering counts when proceeds moved through accounts, real estate, or across borders. These carry heavy penalties and open the door to forfeiture of money and property.
- False Statements and Obstruction: Sometimes the charge is not the underlying conduct but what someone told an agent or did after learning of an investigation.
If Agents Call, a Subpoena Arrives, or Accounts Are Frozen
The most useful thing a person can do in a federal fraud investigation is stop talking and get counsel. Be courteous with agents, take their names and contact information, and decline to discuss the matter until a lawyer is involved. Statements to federal agents can be used against you, and an inaccurate or incomplete answer can become its own false-statement charge, even if the underlying conduct was lawful. Do not delete emails, texts, or files, and do not ask employees or partners to “get their stories straight.” Destroying or altering records can create an obstruction case that is easier to prove than the fraud.
A target letter or grand jury subpoena is not a formality. A target letter means prosecutors believe they have substantial evidence tying you to a crime, and this is frequently the best moment to engage a federal fraud defense lawyer in Miami, because there may still be room to present information, discuss the scope of charges, or arrange a voluntary surrender in place of an arrest. If a bank account has been frozen or devices have been seized, counsel can address the seizure and the possibility of recovering assets unconnected to any alleged offense.
If charges are filed, the case will be heard in the Southern District of Florida. In Miami, that means one of the federal courthouses downtown: the Wilkie D. Ferguson, Jr. United States Courthouse, the C. Clyde Atkins United States Courthouse, or the James Lawrence King Federal Justice Building. Cases arising in Broward, Palm Beach, and Monroe Counties can proceed in the district’s courthouses in Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, and Key West. Appeals go to the Eleventh Circuit, which covers federal courts in Alabama, Florida, and Georgia.
Expect the early weeks to center on the initial appearance, a detention hearing, and the arrival of discovery, which in a fraud case may be tens of thousands of pages of bank records, emails, and recordings. The common mistakes are treating the investigation as something that will blow over, speaking with coworkers about what the government might know, and waiting for an indictment before hiring a lawyer. Each of those narrows the options available.
How Fraud Cases Are Actually Won, Narrowed, or Resolved
Intent is the center of nearly every fraud defense. The government must show that a defendant knowingly participated in a scheme to deceive, not that a business failed, a billing code was wrong, or a loan application contained an error someone else prepared. A defense built on the documents often looks for the gap between what the paper shows and what the prosecution says it means: who actually created the statements, who reviewed them, what advice was relied on, and whether the alleged victim truly lost what the government claims.
Loss amount deserves its own fight. Because the Sentencing Guidelines scale upward with alleged loss, a challenge to how the government counts it, such as crediting legitimate value delivered, excluding unrelated transactions, or rejecting an inflated “intended loss,” can reduce a recommended range dramatically. Enhancements for sophisticated means, number of victims, or abuse of trust get the same scrutiny. Motions to suppress evidence from searches and to dismiss defective counts come first; negotiation with the Assistant United States Attorney follows from a realistic reading of how those motions and the evidence would play before a jury.
Forfeiture runs alongside the criminal case. Federal statutes can reach money, real estate, vehicles, and business assets, and a family can lose the resources it needs to fund a defense while the case is pending. Protecting property that has no connection to the alleged offense is part of the work from the start. If a conviction does occur, a well-prepared sentencing presentation and appellate review in the Eleventh Circuit remain available.
Questions About Federal Fraud Defense in Miami
Do I need a lawyer if I have only received a letter or subpoena?
Yes. A subpoena or target letter signals an active investigation, and what you say or produce at this stage can shape whether charges are filed and which ones. Early involvement preserves options that tend to disappear after an indictment.
What is the difference between a witness, a subject, and a target?
A witness may simply have information. A subject’s conduct is within the scope of the investigation. A target is someone prosecutors believe is linked to a crime by substantial evidence. The labels are not always stated accurately or kept constant, so do not assume you are safe because you were not called a target.
Can I be charged federally for mistakes on a loan application?
A mistake alone is not a crime, but prosecutors may allege it was knowing. These cases often come down to who prepared the application, what the applicant understood, and whether any reliance on an accountant or broker was reasonable.
How long after PPP or EIDL loans can charges be filed?
Congress extended the limitations period for PPP and EIDL fraud to 10 years, so loans from the pandemic period remain open to prosecution for a long time. If a lender, the SBA, or an agent has contacted you, get advice before responding.
Is a federal fraud sentence the same as a Florida state sentence?
No. Federal sentences are guided by the Sentencing Guidelines, which weigh loss amount and enhancements heavily, and the federal system has no parole. The time imposed is close to the time served.
Some conduct can draw attention from both. Florida also treats large-value theft seriously, with a first-degree felony for property worth $100,000 or more carrying up to 30 years, so coordination between forums is something your lawyer should evaluate early.
What happens to my business if I am under investigation?
Seizures of records, frozen accounts, and employee interviews can disrupt operations. Counsel can help manage communications with agents, advise on document preservation, and address any asset restraint so the business can keep functioning where possible.
Will a fraud conviction affect my professional license?
A fraud conviction commonly triggers review by licensing boards and can affect healthcare, financial, real estate, and legal licenses. The risk should be part of any decision about a plea, not a surprise afterward.
Should I cooperate with the government?
Cooperation can reduce exposure in some cases and be damaging in others, depending on what you know, what the government already has, and what you would be asked to admit. It should never be decided without a full review of the evidence and your own risks.
Can a federal fraud case be dismissed before trial?
Dismissal is possible where counts are legally defective, evidence is suppressed, or the proof of intent collapses. Mr. Hassan has handled multi-defendant federal matters in which charges were dismissed, but outcomes depend on the facts of each case.
Do you represent clients who prefer to speak Spanish?
Yes. Mr. Hassan is fluent in Spanish and speaks directly with clients and their families, with no interpreter between them and their lawyer.
What if I have already spoken to agents without a lawyer?
Do not try to fix it by contacting them again on your own. Tell your lawyer exactly what was said and what documents were handed over so the next steps can be planned with the full picture.
Serving Federal Fraud Clients Across Miami-Dade and South Florida
From downtown Miami and Brickell, the firm represents clients in Miami, Hialeah, Doral, Miami Beach, Coral Gables, Kendall, Aventura, North Miami, Homestead, and Miami Gardens, along with Miami Lakes, Pinecrest, Cutler Bay, Sweetwater, Opa-locka, Miami Springs, Key Biscayne, and Little Havana. Businesses, medical practices, and families in these communities have been the subject of federal fraud inquiries ranging from healthcare billing to pandemic loans.
The firm also serves clients in neighboring Broward County, Palm Beach County, and Monroe County, all of which fall within the Southern District of Florida. Because federal practice is not limited by county lines, Mr. Hassan represents people charged in federal courts across Florida and around the country, including cases with ties to Colombia, Mexico, the Bahamas, Ecuador, and Cuba.
Speak With a Miami Federal Fraud Defense Lawyer Today
If you are under investigation or have been charged, a conversation with a Miami federal fraud defense lawyer in the next few days can change what options remain open. Contact the Law Office of Nayib Hassan, P.A. to arrange a confidential consultation. The firm is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, because agent visits, seizures, and arrests do not follow a business schedule.