Embezzlement against estate
Official text prohibited actmental stateif conditionpenaltylegal term
(a) Offense. A person described in subsection (b) who knowingly and fraudulently appropriates to the person's own use, , spends, or transfers any property or secretes or destroys any document belonging to the estate of a debtor shall be , imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both.
(b) Person to Whom Section Applies. A person described in this subsection is one who has access to property or documents belonging to an estate by virtue of the person's participation in the administration of the estate as a trustee, custodian, marshal, attorney, or other officer of the court or as an agent, employee, or other person engaged by such an officer to perform a service with respect to the estate.
History: (June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 690 (PDF, 39 MB); Pub. L. 95–598, title III, §314(a)(1), (d)(1), (2), Nov. 6, 1978, 92 Stat. 2676 (PDF, 21 MB), 2677; Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, §330016(1)(K), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2147 (PDF, 52 MB); Pub. L. 103–394, title III, §312(a)(1)(A), Oct. 22, 1994, 108 Stat. 4139 (PDF, 6.5 MB); Pub. L. 104–294, title VI, §601(a)(1), Oct. 11, 1996, 110 Stat. 3497.)
Simplified explanation
It is a federal crime for people who help run a bankruptcy estate (the debtor's property managed by the court) to steal or misuse its property or to hide or destroy its documents. This covers trustees, custodians, marshals, attorneys, and other court officers, plus agents or employees they hire.