NYC RICO Lawyer

RICO is a powerful federal law that lets prosecutors charge everyone connected to an alleged criminal enterprise in a single case, and a RICO conviction carries up to 20 years in prison per count, or even life, along with mandatory forfeiture of money and property. Originally aimed at the mafia, RICO is now used against businesses, gangs, public officials, and white-collar defendants who the government says operated through a pattern of racketeering. Because RICO requires the government to prove an enterprise and a pattern of specific crimes, it is complex and frequently defensible, but only with the right lawyer and an early start. If you are under investigation or charged in New York City, an experienced RICO attorney should be your first call.

Varghese & Associates, P.C. is a federal criminal defense firm on Wall Street, in the heart of the Southern District of New York. RICO defense is a core part of our federal white-collar crime defense practice, and the firm is led by Vinoo Varghese, a former prosecutor and one of the most recognized criminal defense attorneys in the country. Our RICO attorneys handle these cases in house, from the first subpoena through investigation, indictment, trial, sentencing, and appeal. Matters are not routed out to other firms.

Call now for a confidential consultation with a New York City RICO lawyer. The earlier our RICO defense lawyers are involved, the more they can do.

What Is RICO?

RICO, the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, is a federal law that makes it a crime to conduct or participate in the affairs of an enterprise through a pattern of racketeering activity, and it is found at 18 U.S.C. §§ 1961 through 1968. It was passed in 1970 to dismantle organized crime, but its language is broad enough to reach any group, including a business, a union, a gang, or an informal association, that the government says committed a series of connected crimes. RICO lets prosecutors combine many defendants and many offenses into one sweeping case, and it carries severe penalties and forfeiture, which is why a RICO charge is among the most serious a person can face.

What Are the Elements of a RICO Charge?

To convict you under RICO, the government must prove the existence of an enterprise, that the enterprise affected interstate commerce, that you were associated with or employed by it, that you participated in conducting its affairs, and that you did so through a pattern of racketeering activity. A pattern generally requires at least two related predicate acts committed within ten years. Each of these elements is a place to attack the case. The government frequently overreaches on whether a true enterprise existed, whether the alleged acts form a genuine pattern, and whether a particular defendant actually participated in running the enterprise rather than merely being present or associated with others.

What Are RICO Predicate Acts?

RICO predicate acts, also called racketeering activity, are the specific crimes that can serve as the building blocks of a RICO charge, and the statute lists a wide range of them at 18 U.S.C. § 1961. They include both state and federal offenses, such as:

• Murder, kidnapping, arson, and robbery
• Extortion and bribery
• Wire fraud, mail fraud, and bank fraud
• Money laundering
• Drug trafficking
• Obstruction of justice and witness tampering
• Human trafficking and illegal gambling

What Are the Types of RICO Cases?

RICO is used against organized crime, street and prison gangs, drug trafficking organizations, labor racketeering, public corruption, and white-collar business enterprises. Although most people associate RICO with the mafia, federal and state prosecutors increasingly use it against corporations, executives, and professionals, framing an alleged fraud scheme as a racketeering enterprise. In New York, both federal RICO and the state enterprise-corruption statute are actively used, which is why a RICO defense lawyer has to be ready to fight the enterprise-and-pattern theory in either forum.

RICO and the Statutes Behind It

RICO is charged under a specific group of statutes, and understanding which provision applies matters, because the theory and penalties differ. The charges most often in play include:

• Substantive RICO, conducting an enterprise's affairs through a pattern of racketeering (18 U.S.C. § 1962(c))
• RICO conspiracy, agreeing that the enterprise's affairs be conducted through racketeering (18 U.S.C. § 1962(d))
• Acquiring or maintaining an interest in an enterprise through racketeering (18 U.S.C. §§ 1962(a) and (b))
• Definitions of enterprise and racketeering activity (18 U.S.C. § 1961)
• Criminal penalties and mandatory forfeiture (18 U.S.C. § 1963)
• Violent Crimes in Aid of Racketeering, known as VICAR (18 U.S.C. § 1959)
• New York enterprise corruption under the Organized Crime Control Act (N.Y. Penal Law Article 460)

What Is RICO Conspiracy?

RICO conspiracy, under 18 U.S.C. § 1962(d), makes it a crime to agree that the affairs of an enterprise will be conducted through a pattern of racketeering, and it is often easier for the government to prove than a substantive RICO count. A person can be convicted of RICO conspiracy without personally committing any predicate act, as long as they knowingly agreed to the overall criminal objective. That breadth is exactly why RICO conspiracy is so dangerous, and why the defense focuses hard on whether the government can prove a genuine agreement rather than mere association with the people involved.

What Are the Penalties for RICO?

A RICO conviction carries up to 20 years in federal prison per count, or up to life if one of the predicate acts is an offense that itself carries a life sentence, along with mandatory forfeiture of any interest, money, or property connected to the racketeering. Because a RICO case can include many counts and predicate acts, exposure can be enormous, and the forfeiture provisions let the government seize businesses, homes, and accounts. RICO also has a civil side that allows victims to sue for triple damages, which can run alongside a criminal case. The severity of these consequences is exactly why an experienced RICO attorney should be involved as early as possible.

How Does Sentencing Work in a RICO Case?

Federal RICO sentences are calculated under the United States Sentencing Guidelines, which generally tie the sentence to the most serious underlying predicate acts, along with the defendant's role in the enterprise. That means the predicate crimes, whether fraud, drugs, or violence, drive much of the range. One of the most valuable fights in a RICO case is contesting which predicate acts are properly attributed to a particular defendant and challenging the defendant's alleged role. Our RICO attorneys work to narrow the conduct attributed to a client, contest enhancements, present detailed mitigation, and argue for a sentence below the guideline range.

What Are the Defenses to a RICO Charge?

RICO requires the government to prove an enterprise and a pattern, and that is where the defenses concentrate. Every case is different, but the strategies our RICO lawyers commonly use include:

• No enterprise. Challenging whether a genuine, structured enterprise existed, as opposed to unrelated individuals or ordinary business activity.
• No pattern. Arguing that the alleged acts were isolated or unrelated and do not form the continuous pattern RICO requires.
• No participation in conducting the enterprise. Mere association with, or employment by, an enterprise is not enough; the government must prove the defendant helped operate it.
• Insufficient predicate acts. Attacking whether the government can prove at least two qualifying, related predicate crimes.
• No agreement. In a RICO conspiracy, showing the absence of a knowing agreement to the racketeering objective.
• Suppression. Where evidence, including from wiretaps or searches, was unlawfully obtained, our attorneys move to suppress under the Fourth Amendment.

What Should You Do If You Are Under Investigation for RICO?

If you learn you are under investigation for RICO, or are named in a RICO indictment, do not talk to federal agents, do not discuss the case with anyone including co-defendants, and do not alter or destroy any records. Call a RICO attorney immediately. RICO cases are built on wiretaps, informants, and cooperating co-defendants, and anything you say can be used against the whole group. You have the right to remain silent under the Fifth Amendment and the right to counsel under the Sixth Amendment. Because RICO cases often involve many defendants, having independent counsel focused solely on your interests is critical. Preserve everything, say nothing, and let your lawyer engage the government.

How Our RICO Attorneys Can Help You

Our RICO defense lawyers defend these cases at every stage, and they look for the earliest possible point at which the case can be won or shrunk:

• Pre-indictment defense. Responding to grand jury subpoenas and target letters, handling proffers, and negotiating with the U.S. Attorney's Office to seek a declination or to keep a client out of a sweeping indictment.
• Attacking the enterprise and pattern. Building the factual and legal case that no true enterprise or pattern existed, or that the client did not participate in running it.
• Wiretap and evidence challenges. Testing the legality of wiretaps and searches and filing suppression motions where the government cut corners.
• Severance. Moving to separate a client from more culpable co-defendants so the jury judges the client on their own conduct.
• Trial. Trying cases before federal judges and juries in the Southern District, the Eastern District, and other districts as engaged, which is exactly why the firm prepares every case for trial from the start.
• Sentencing and appeal. Narrowing the predicate acts and role attributed to the client, defending against forfeiture, and pursuing appeals and post-conviction relief.

Is RICO Only Used Against the Mafia?

No. While RICO was created to fight organized crime, it is now regularly used against businesses, corporate executives, gangs, unions, and public officials. Prosecutors can frame almost any group that committed a series of connected crimes as a racketeering enterprise, including a company accused of a long-running fraud. That expansion is why white-collar defendants, not just traditional organized-crime figures, increasingly find themselves facing RICO charges, and why a RICO attorney who understands both worlds matters.

Can a RICO Charge Be Dismissed Before Trial?

Yes. A RICO charge can be dismissed or narrowed before trial through a motion to dismiss where the indictment fails to allege a proper enterprise or pattern, a successful suppression motion, a severance that separates a client from the group, or negotiation that removes a client from the case. Because RICO requires the government to prove complex enterprise-and-pattern elements, these cases have more pressure points than they first appear. Dismissals are never guaranteed, but they are far more likely when a RICO attorney is involved early and attacks the theory before it hardens.

How Much Does It Cost to Hire a RICO Lawyer in New York City?

The cost of a RICO lawyer in New York City depends on the number of predicate acts and co-defendants, the volume of wiretap and discovery material, and whether the case resolves before or goes to trial. RICO cases are among the most document-intensive and time-consuming in federal court, so they require real work. Our RICO attorneys are transparent about fees from the first conversation and structure the representation to fit the matter. Given the decades of exposure and the forfeiture at stake, the more important question is usually what an inadequate defense can cost you.

A RICO Attorney the National Media Turns To

When the biggest federal cases in the country are in the news, networks and newspapers call Vinoo Varghese to explain what is really happening in the courtroom. That is the same judgment and credibility our RICO attorneys bring to your case.

Vinoo Varghese has provided legal analysis and commentary for CBS News, Fox News, Fox Business, CNN, MSNBC, Court TV, HLN, BBC, Inside Edition, i24 News, Sky News Arabia, and Nancy Grace's Crime Stories, and has hosted true-crime legal analysis for Vanity Fair. He has been quoted as a legal authority by The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, the New York Law Journal, Law360, the New York Daily News, and the New York Post. A former prosecutor from the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office, he is a nine-time National Trial Lawyers Top 100 honoree, an eight-time New York Metro Super Lawyer, rated AV Preeminent by Martindale-Hubbell, and has served on the visiting faculty of Harvard Law School's Trial Advocacy Workshop.

Contact a New York City RICO Lawyer Now

If you are under federal investigation, have received a target letter or grand jury subpoena, or have been charged under RICO anywhere in New York City, do not wait and do not talk to anyone but your lawyer. RICO defense is part of our broader federal white-collar crime defense practice, and a RICO attorney who has stood in the courtroom and tried the cases can change what happens next.

Call Varghese & Associates, P.C. for a confidential consultation. Our office is located at 2 Wall Street, Suite 310, New York, NY 10005, steps from the federal courthouses of the Southern District of New York.