Government and public statistics
18 U.S. Code 1343: Fraud by wire, radio, or television
Cornell Law School Legal Information Institute, Cornell LII, n.d.
Read the originalRead on October 17, 2026
- What it is
- The text of the federal wire fraud statute, which makes it a crime to run a scheme to get money by false pretenses using wire, radio or television communication, with penalties of up to 20 years in prison.
- How much weight it carries
- The official United States Code text, republished by Cornell's Legal Information Institute. It is the statute itself, but it does not say how courts apply it to a phone call that uses a cloned voice, which depends on the facts of each case.
Facts taken from this source
- Under the federal wire fraud statute, a scheme to obtain money by false pretenses, carried out by wire, radio or television communication, can be punished by a fine or up to 20 years in prison, or both.
“shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than 20 years, or both” (Final sentence of the statute's first paragraph)