Federal Investigation

 The alleged lead conspirator in a robbery and extortion case, Hector Rivera, has been sentenced to thirty-two years in prison. Rivera was originally indicted in December of 2008 following an investigation that linked him to robberies in midtown Manhattan from 2003 through 2008. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation in New York, Rivera and numerous co-conspirators were targeting diamond businesses in the area. In one incident in 2005, the crew allegedly disguised themselves as FedEx delivery workers and entered a local diamond business. In the process, they tied up the employees and robbed the company of millions of dollars.https://askcompetentlawyer.com/federal-crimes/ During many of their crimes, the conspirators would also hijack vehicles known to be transporting merchandise.

Eventually, the FBI became more aware of Rivera's potential involvement and began recording his telephone conversations and personal meetings with the help of a confidential informant. While tracking Rivera, they discovered that another robbery was scheduled for December 4, 2008. Prior to the initiation of the robbery, investigators arrested Rivera and the co-conspirators. A jury trial was held before Judge Baer of the Southern District of New York about one year later and Rivera was found guilty of conspiracy to commit robbery, three counts of robbery or attempted robbery and two counts relating to a firearms charge.

Rivera actually received a lenient sentence as he was facing twenty years for each robbery charge, which does not include the firearms counts against him. However, he was required to forfeit $2.93 million in criminal proceeds. As in the instance case, the FBI and prosecution will investigate a potential conspirator for years in order to capture the high level offenders. This most often leads to additional charges against those who were much less involved in the conspiracy. This is the reason that it is most important to hire a criminal defense attorney that is experienced within the federal system. Once you are aware that you could be under investigation, contact an attorney that can provide you with advice and determine if the FBI actually views you as a viable suspect.