Suppose the bankrupt committed fraud - would the debts be discharged in bankruptcy?
No. The Bankruptcy Code has long prohibited debtors from discharging liabilities incurred on account of their fraud, carrying forth a basic policy of affording relief only to an "honest but unfortunate debtor."
Congress did not favor giving perpetrators of fraud a fresh start (by allowing them to wipe out their debts in bankruptcy) over the interest in protecting victims of fraud when it wrote the Bankruptcy Laws. Accordingly, Section 523(a)(2)(A) of the Bankruptcy Code excepts from discharge in bankruptcy "any debt . . . for money, property, services, or an extension, renewal, or refinancing of credit, to the extent obtained by . . . false pretenses, a false representation, or actual fraud." 11 U.S.C. § 523(a)(2)(A).
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