Magna Carta News
Thursday, March 25, 2004
making the bribing bank officials a crime
Oklahoma House of Representatives
Media Division
March 25, 2004
OKLAHOMA CITY - Under existing law, a banker can go to jail for accepting a bribe, but no state law exists to prohibit a person from offering one. Senate Bill 1503 would close that loophole in the statutes.
The bill would establish the offense of "commercial bribery." Elaine Dodd, vice president of the Oklahoma Bankers Association Fraud Division, said the bill would "criminalize the act for someone who offers a bribe to a banking official."
Anyone convicted of commercial bribery involving an insured depository institution could be guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in the county jail. However, if intent to defraud was a factor in the crime, a violator could be found guilty of a felony crime and receive a prison term up to 10 years in the state Department of
Corrections.
Another section of the bill provides that someone who submits false statements or documentation to a bank employee to obtain personal information of another would be violating Oklahoma law.
SB 1503 would make it unlawful for anyone to knowingly present false documentation or other information to an officer or employee of a financial institution in order to obtain another person's bank account records or other personal information.
"We have documented instances where people have called banks and wanted to withdraw other people's money," Dodd said. "This bill would protect the citizens of Oklahoma from a type of identity theft."
Rep. Lucky Lamons, D-Tulsa, said anyone convicted of obtaining, or trying to obtain, someone else's personal information from a financial institution could be imprisoned for up to 10 years. In addition, the court could order the violator to pay restitution to every person whose information was obtained or utilized without their permission, Lamons
said.
Also, an offender who willfully makes a statement or written report to falsify the value of any land, property or security for the purpose of influencing an action or decision could draw as much as six months in the county jail, up to a $500 fine, or both.
The measure passed the House's Public Safety and Judiciary Subcommittee and is scheduled to be considered by the full Appropriations and Budget Committee.
Lamons is a retired Tulsa police officer. Sen. Dick Wilkerson, D-Atwood, the principal author of SB 1503, is a former deputy director of the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation and a law enforcement instructor.
- 30 -
Scott Hancock
Media Specialist
Oklahoma House of Representatives
1-800-522-8502 ext 422
Oklahoma House of Representatives
Media Division
March 25, 2004
OKLAHOMA CITY - Under existing law, a banker can go to jail for accepting a bribe, but no state law exists to prohibit a person from offering one. Senate Bill 1503 would close that loophole in the statutes.
The bill would establish the offense of "commercial bribery." Elaine Dodd, vice president of the Oklahoma Bankers Association Fraud Division, said the bill would "criminalize the act for someone who offers a bribe to a banking official."
Anyone convicted of commercial bribery involving an insured depository institution could be guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in the county jail. However, if intent to defraud was a factor in the crime, a violator could be found guilty of a felony crime and receive a prison term up to 10 years in the state Department of
Corrections.
Another section of the bill provides that someone who submits false statements or documentation to a bank employee to obtain personal information of another would be violating Oklahoma law.
SB 1503 would make it unlawful for anyone to knowingly present false documentation or other information to an officer or employee of a financial institution in order to obtain another person's bank account records or other personal information.
"We have documented instances where people have called banks and wanted to withdraw other people's money," Dodd said. "This bill would protect the citizens of Oklahoma from a type of identity theft."
Rep. Lucky Lamons, D-Tulsa, said anyone convicted of obtaining, or trying to obtain, someone else's personal information from a financial institution could be imprisoned for up to 10 years. In addition, the court could order the violator to pay restitution to every person whose information was obtained or utilized without their permission, Lamons
said.
Also, an offender who willfully makes a statement or written report to falsify the value of any land, property or security for the purpose of influencing an action or decision could draw as much as six months in the county jail, up to a $500 fine, or both.
The measure passed the House's Public Safety and Judiciary Subcommittee and is scheduled to be considered by the full Appropriations and Budget Committee.
Lamons is a retired Tulsa police officer. Sen. Dick Wilkerson, D-Atwood, the principal author of SB 1503, is a former deputy director of the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation and a law enforcement instructor.
- 30 -
Scott Hancock
Media Specialist
Oklahoma House of Representatives
1-800-522-8502 ext 422
