Is it possible to charge someone with conspiracy for working with an undercover law enforcement officer to rob a bank?

• A. True
• B. False
• C. Not enough information
• D. It depends on jurisdiction

Answer: (B)

Conspiracy liability rests on an agreement to commit a crime and an overt act in furtherance of that plan, and the other participant can be anyone, including a law enforcement officer. If someone agrees with an undercover officer to rob a bank and takes concrete steps toward carrying out the plan, there is a genuine agreement between two parties to commit the crime, so conspiracy can attach. The officer’s status does not automatically erase the defendant’s intent or the collaborative nature of the plan.

Entrapment might be raised as a defense if the government induced a person to commit a crime they would not have otherwise planned, but it doesn’t automatically bar conspiracy liability if the defendant willingly joined the plan and acted in furtherance of it. In many sting operations, undercover officers are part of the conspiracy for the purpose of charging those who agreed to commit the crime.