New York Criminal Lawyer Blog
The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office announced the indictment earlier today of Mark A. Focht, the former Chief Operating Officer of 3V Capital Management LLC. It is alleged that Mr. Focht perpetrated the white collar crime of Grand Larceny in the Second Degree (PL 155.40) by stealing $250,000 from one of the funds that he managed. He is also charged with Forgery in the Second Degree (PL 170.10) and Falsifying Business Records (PL 175.10) in the First Degree for allegedly creating forged documents to both execute his thefts and to cover them up once he was done.
According to the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office’s press release:
Mark A. Focht “stole $250,000 by using a forged authorization form to wire $250,000 out of a bank account of Pierce Diversified Strategy Master Fund, LLC, one of the funds managed by 3V Capital Management. Mr. Focht used the stolen money to make a personal investment to benefit himself. To conceal the missing $250,000, Mr. Focht created forged documents that falsely represented to both Mr. Focht’s employer and to the client hedge fund that the $250,000 had been invested on behalf of the hedge fund. In fact, the $250,000 was invested by Mr. Focht for his own purposes, in violation of the legal, fiduciary and ethical obligations he owed his clients.”
If convicted of the Grand Larceny in the Second Degree, Mr. Foch faces up to 15 years in prison. Forgery in the Second Degree is punishable by up to 7 years in prison and Falsifying Business Records is punishable by up to 4 years in prison.
As a former Manhattan prosecutor who served under Robert Morgenthau for seven years, I supervised white collar investigations and prosecutions with the NYPD, Secret Service, Postal Inspection Service, State Department and SEC. Many of these prosecutions involved multiple millions of dollars in theft through both forgery and the falsification of business records. The prosecutors who are handling this case are not merely diligent and methodical in their investigations, but experienced in these types of crimes. In fact, the bureau that is pursuing this case, Investigation Division Central, consists of many elite prosecutors and support staff who for years have handled similar crimes and obtained convictions for those crimes. In short, Mr. Focht and his criminal defense attorney have a lot of work ahead of them.
Whether you are charged with Grand Larceny, Forgery or Falsifying Business Records, a white collar criminal defense attorney with practical experience who has battled in the trenches on both sides is required in order to preserve your liberty and integrity. While no attorney can guarantee a particular result, the white collar criminal defense attorneys and former Manhattan prosecutors at Saland Law PC have the experience, knowledge and tenacity to assess your case and implement the right plan to zealously defend your rights, freedom and good name.