Fraud is a violation of trust. At its core, it is a human act intended to deceive another person in such a way that the victim suffers a loss and the perpetrator makes an unlawful gain. Although fraud can be considered theft, such theft is not by force. Importantly, there is no robbery at gunpoint, no direct threat of harm or injury to the victim, or even any use of physical force. Rather, the perpetrator relies on lies, misrepresentation, or betraying the trust of another in order to gain money or something else he or she considers to be of value. This entry begins by reviewing a few theories of crime as they relate to fraud; it then discusses the status of the development ...

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