The law usually punishes those who spend money accidentally deposited in their accounts. Accidental transfers are common in the digital age, and wires can be paid back instantly. A Pennsylvania couple faced felony charges after spending money accidentally deposited in their account. But New York law has exceptions to this rule, known as the "discharge-for-value-defense." If the beneficiary is entitled to the money and did not know it was accidentally wired, they can keep it. Revlon lenders said they believed Citibank was wiring prepayments for a loan. After all, the money accidentally wired was the exact amount "to the penny" Citibank owed them, although the loan wasn't set to mature for quite some time.
