Conspiracy is a favorite law of federal prosecutors. It is defined as an agreement between at least two people to work together to commit a crime that violates federal law. It is commonly described as a partnership in crime, where each member acts as the gent of all other members. Prosecutors favor charging conspiracy because it is the agreement itself that constitutes the crime. Agreement can be proved by circumstantial evidence, and that prosecutors much leeway in convincing a jury that a crime has occurred.

Individuals may be considered members of a conspiracy even though they don’t know the identities of other members or are even aware of the details of the scheme. The law allows conviction of conspiracy charges as long as the individual knew the illegal nature of the scheme and intentionally took part in the plan on at least one occasion. And that part can be virtually anything. The Government is not required to prove that the alleged conspirators entered into a formal agreement nor that they directly discussed the details of the plan with each other. It also isn’t required to prove that the details of the plan were even implemented.

Common instances of federal conspiracy offenses include:

• At least two individuals trying to defraud the United States

• At least two individuals scheming to commit an offense against the United States

• At least two individuals conspiring to manufacture, distribute, or possess controlled substances with the intent to distribute

• Robbery of interstate commerce

Some federal conspiracy charges are punishable by a maximum of five years in prison. But there are a number of federal conspiracy statutes that carry a more severe punishment, including the conspiracy to deliver drugs.