Fraud is a form of white collar crime that features some unique characteristics. Like other white collar crimes, fraud involves deceptive practices for personal and financial gain via non-violent means. In some cases, fraud can be committed by a company manager through payroll systems.
Managers of companies often have payroll duties. For instance, they may ensure that employees are paid wages at the end of each month. They may also be tasked with taking payments from clients. Fraud can occur via payroll in several ways.
Examples
For example, someone with access to payroll may register a new employee and set their rate of pay. They ensure that company money is paid to this employee on a routine basis. However, that employee may not actually exist. Instead, the money is being paid into an account that the manager has access to and can withdraw for personal use.
A fake employee need not be set up in order to siphon money out of a company. This could also be done by falsifying overtime hours. While many managers are paid on a salary basis, this is not always the case. A manager on an hourly rate could exaggerate the number of hours they have worked and thus take money from a company that way.
White collar crime is often wrongly categorized as not being serious. The opposite is actually the case, and those convicted of payroll fraud could potentially face lengthy jail sentences as a result. With that being said, fraud must be proved beyond reasonable doubt. If you are facing accusations of any white collar offense, it will benefit you to seek legal guidance in order to build the strongest defense possible under the circumstances.