Page 559 - ACFE Fraud Reports 2009_2020

Case Results

Figure 100: Cases Referred to Law Enforcement

2016 59.3% 40.7%

2014 60.9% 39.1%

Referred
2012 65.2% 34.8%
Not Referred
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
PERCENT OF CASES

Of the victim organizations that referred cases for prosecution, the results of those criminal actions for the past three
reports are shown in Figure 101 (cases that are still pending were not included in this analysis). While the percentage
of defendants who pleaded guilty or no contest has remained about the same over time, the rate of cases in which au-
thorities declined to prosecute dropped from 19.2% in 2012 to 13.3% in 2016. Combining guilty pleas and convictions
at trial, 76.4% of cases submitted for prosecution resulted in a finding of guilt in 2016, while 2.3% of such prosecutions
ended in acquittal. Although the percentage of cases referred to prosecution decreased gradually from the 2012 report
to the 2016 version (see Figure 100), the percentage of cases that prosecutors successfully pursued increased.

Figure 101: Results of Cases Referred to Law Enforcement

2.3%
2016 56.8% 19.6% 13.3% 8.1%
0.9%
Pleaded Guilty/No Contest
2014 56.5% 18.2% 15.4% 9.0%
Convicted at Trial
1.5% Declined to Prosecute
Acquitted
2012 55.6% 16.4% 19.2% 7.2%
Other
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
PERCENT OF CASES

REPORT TO THE NATIONS ON OCCUPATIONAL FRAUD AND ABUSE 75