Federal prosecutor Matthew R. Payne is at the center of one of New Orleans’ strangest collision points between street crime and white-collar fraud: the so-called “staged wrecks” case in federal court. An experienced trial lawyer, Payne is leading the government’s team as jurors are asked to decide whether choreographed crashes with big rigs were used to squeeze insurance companies and trucking outfits for cash. The sprawling investigation has already produced dozens of admitted crash “slammers” and swept local attorneys into the mix, with the case also brushing up against the 2020 killing of a cooperating witness.
Payne’s record in complex fraud cases
Payne serves as a senior trial attorney in the U.S. Attorney’s Office in New Orleans, where he has…..