Federal Wire Fraud

If you or someone you love has been charged with federal wire fraud, here is what the charge means, what the government has to prove, and what the penalties are. Wire fraud is one of the most common federal charges, and it carries up to 20 years in prison for each count. But it has limits, and the Supreme Court has drawn some of them in recent years.

Criminal Center represents people charged with federal wire fraud. Attorney Brandon Sample handles wire fraud cases from indictment (the formal charge) through appeal.

What is federal wire fraud?

Wire fraud is a crime under 18 U.S.C. § 1343. It covers anyone who has a "scheme to defraud" (a plan to get money or property by lying or tricking people) and who sends a wire, radio, or TV communication across state or national lines to carry it out.

Wire fraud is very similar to mail fraud. The difference is that wire fraud uses a phone call, email, text, or other internet communication instead of the mail. The government must prove the communication actually traveled in interstate or foreign commerce. That is usually easy to show, because most internet messages, bank transfers, and online payments cross state lines — which is why wire fraud is one of the most common federal charges.

What does the government have to prove for wire fraud?

To convict you of wire fraud, the government must prove:

• You voluntarily and intentionally created or took part in a plan to get money or property from another person or organization through false or misleading statements or promises.
• You meant to cheat someone (intent to defraud).
• The lie was material, meaning it could affect someone's decision (Neder v. United States, 1999).
• An interstate wire communication was used to carry out the plan.

Read about federal mail fraud

Does someone have to lose money for it to be wire fraud?

Not always. One reason prosecutors have so much room in wire fraud cases is that they do not have to show the plan worked or that a victim actually lost money. In Kousisis v. United States (2025), the Supreme Court held that a person can be convicted of wire fraud for using material lies to get someone into a deal, even if the person did not mean to cause the victim a financial loss.

But the plan must aim at money or property. In Ciminelli v. United States (2023), the Court held that depriving someone of information they need to make decisions is not enough by itself.

Kickback schemes are a common example where no single customer may have paid more. A separate law, 18 U.S.C. § 1346, lets prosecutors charge some bribery and kickback schemes as "honest services" fraud. The Supreme Court has limited that law to bribes and kickbacks (Skilling v. United States, 2010).

So do not assume that a wire fraud charge will go away just because no one person was harmed. Prosecutors also weigh deterrence and public attention when they decide which wire fraud cases to pursue.

Why do prosecutors add wire fraud to other charges?

Sometimes prosecutors add a wire fraud charge against someone being investigated for other crimes. In our view, this can happen when the prosecutor is not sure the other charges will hold up. Because the elements of wire fraud are broad compared with many other federal crimes, the charge gives the prosecutor another way to seek a conviction against someone they believe is involved in other illegal activity.

What defenses come up in wire fraud cases?

Every case is different, and whether a defense is available always depends on the facts. These questions come up often:

• Good faith: did you honestly believe what you said was true? Good faith goes directly to whether you meant to defraud anyone. It is not always a workable defense. But if you asked a lawyer for advice before the deal, told the lawyer all the facts, and followed the advice, that can strongly support a good faith defense.
• Puffery and materiality: in a sales case, was the salesperson just using colorful sales talk, or deliberately lying to the customer? Sales talk that no reasonable buyer would rely on is usually not material.
• Money or property: was the plan really aimed at money or property, as the Supreme Court requires?
• The wire: was there an interstate communication that was part of carrying out the plan?

Brandon Sample can review the facts with you and look at whether any of these defenses fit your case.

What is the sentence for wire fraud?

• Up to 20 years in prison and a fine for each count (18 U.S.C. § 1343). This maximum applies whether or not you have a prior record. For an individual, the usual maximum fine for a felony is $250,000, or twice the gain or loss (18 U.S.C. § 3571).
• Up to 30 years and a $1,000,000 fine if the fraud affects a financial institution, like a bank, or involves benefits for a presidentially declared disaster or emergency.
• Trying or agreeing with others to commit wire fraud carries the same penalties (18 U.S.C. § 1349).

What makes these penalties so serious is that each wire can be charged as a separate count, meaning a separate charge in the indictment, and the judge can sentence you on each count. People charged with wire fraud also often face other federal charges, and the more counts you are convicted of, the higher the risk of stacked sentences. Under the guidelines, sentences on related counts usually run at the same time. But the judge can run them one after another when the guideline range is higher than the maximum for a single count (U.S. Sentencing Guidelines § 5G1.2). There is no guarantee they will run at the same time.

Most sentences are well below the maximum. The federal sentencing guidelines — the rules a federal judge must consult when choosing a sentence — raise the range as the loss amount goes up (U.S. Sentencing Guidelines § 2B1.1).

In most fraud cases the judge must also order restitution, which means paying back the victims' losses (18 U.S.C. § 3663A). The government can also seek forfeiture of property that came from the fraud. Getting a lawyer involved early helps you understand your criminal and civil exposure before you make decisions that are hard to undo.

What should you do next?

Book a consultation to talk it through with Brandon Sample.

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