Criminal Enforcement and Financial Crimes Bureau

The Attorney General's unique statewide criminal jurisdiction enables the Criminal Enforcement and Financial Crimes Bureau (“CEFC” or “the Bureau”) to address criminal conduct throughout New York State, including complex financial crimes which cross county lines.  The Bureau includes attorneys and analysts who, together with designated investigators and auditors, conduct in-depth, long-term criminal investigations and prosecute cases from charging through conviction. The Bureau's main office is located in New York City, with additional offices in Albany, Buffalo and Syracuse.

The Bureau focuses primarily on cases involving securities and investment schemes, tax crimes and insurance fraud.  Pursuant to the Attorney General’s direct jurisdiction under the Martin Act, a significant portion of the Bureau’s cases involve securities fraud, including both frauds upon individual investors and frauds upon the market. The Bureau has collaborative relationships with a variety of federal, state and local law enforcement and regulatory agencies, including the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Commodity Future’s Trading Commission and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, which strengthen the Bureau’s ability to investigate and prosecute financial crimes.

In addition to complex financial schemes, the Bureau investigates and prosecutes a wide variety of white-collar criminal cases, including consumer fraud schemes, public benefits fraud, embezzlement, unlicensed practice of a profession and environmental crimes, based on referrals from New York State agencies.  Some of these State agencies include: the Department of Taxation and Finance, the Office of the Comptroller, the Education Department, the Department of Health, the Department of Environmental Conservation and the New York State Police, the Department of State and the Department of Financial Services.

The Criminal Enforcement and Financial Crimes Bureau includes the Auto Insurance Fraud Unit ("AIFU").  AIFU investigates and prosecutes a variety of auto insurance fraud cases, including staged accidents and fraudulent no-fault medical mills.