Criminal Division

The Criminal Division of the United States Attorney's Office has primary responsibility for the prosecution of more than 900 federal crimes. Federal crimes are defined by Congress and are distinguished from criminal offenses that are prohibited by acts of the state legislature. The Office of the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Indiana has 24 Assistant United States Attorneys assigned to the Criminal Division and who prosecute federal offenses. Four are assigned to the Ft. Wayne Division; 5 are assigned to the South Bend Division; and 15 are assigned to the Hammond Division.

Assistant United States Attorneys assigned to the Criminal Division principally prosecute cases in the following areas: violations of the drug laws; public corruption; white collar crime including bank fraud, mail fraud, telemarketing fraud and health care fraud; violations of federal firearms laws; environmental crimes; violent crime; bank robberies; gang crimes; child pormography; and postal crimes.

Suspected violations of federal law are usually brought to the attention of the United States Attorney's Office by federal criminal investigative agencies. The chief investigative agencies that work with the U.S. Attorney's Office are the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF); Postal Inspection Service; Internal Revenue Service (IRS); Customs Service; the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA); and the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS).