Theft of license plates from a car - Article 325.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation: corpus delicti and liability

ST 325.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

1. Wrongful seizure of the state registration plate of a vehicle, committed out of selfish interest or for the purpose of committing a grave or especially grave crime, is punishable by a fine in the amount of up to two hundred thousand rubles or in the amount of the wages or other income of the convicted person for a period of up to one year, or by mandatory labor up to three hundred and sixty hours, or correctional labor for a term of up to one year, or imprisonment for the same period.

2. The same act, committed by a group of persons by prior conspiracy or by an organized group, is punishable by a fine in the amount of up to three hundred thousand rubles or in the amount of the wages or other income of the convicted person for a period of up to two years, or by compulsory labor for a period of up to four hundred and eighty hours, or correctional labor for a term of up to two years, or imprisonment for a term of up to four years.

Briefly about Article 325.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation

This article of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation talks about the unlawful seizure of the state registration plate of a vehicle by offenders for the following purposes:

for subsequent sale or other material benefit;
to commit a grave or especially grave crime.

The second part of this article talks about those preventive measures that are prescribed if an offense occurred as a result of its organization by a whole group of people according to a pre-prepared plan or by an organized group.

It is worth distinguishing this crime from an administrative offense for which sanctions are imposed under Art. 19.37 Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation. It also treats the theft of state license plates, but with a very important condition: in the absence of signs of a criminal offense.

This means that administrative liability is provided for the act if the theft of car license plates is not pursued for any selfish purposes or the criminals do not want to commit another, more serious crime.

I bought a car, but the license plates were wanted

My boyfriend bought a car six months ago. I immediately registered it and paid the state fee of 2,500 rubles for the numbers. And then recently he was stopped at a traffic police checkpoint and informed that his license plate was wanted.

According to the traffic police program, the numbers are listed on it. But someone put them on the wanted list in Moscow. The MREO says that they are powerless and cannot give up the numbers: there is an order from Moscow to confiscate them.

What should we do? They won’t give out the numbers, they told me to wait until they figure it out. But the young man works on this machine, and time passes.

There is no money for lawyers, and I don’t want to. It’s not our fault that there are problems in Moscow. Help me please.

I have two news for you - good and bad.

Good: it’s been a year since traffic police officers have the right to confiscate license plates on the streets as an administrative measure.

The bad: an alternative to the seizure of license plates may well be the seizure of the car or a ban on its operation. Although in any case the law prohibits driving a car without license plates.

To understand your situation specifically, you will have to carefully read the protocol and see what grounds for seizure are indicated in it.

The corpus delicti and the evidentiary part

To qualify an offense such as theft of license plates from a car, its composition is considered.

Its subject is the state number itself, issued by the traffic police and attached to the body of mechanical vehicles. It does not have any signs of someone else’s property as an item of theft, therefore its theft cannot be qualified under Art. 158 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

The object of the offense is social relations in the field of material objects , and the objective side is the theft of license plates under the article for the purpose of obtaining material gain or committing a serious crime.

Distinction from related crimes

A crime such as theft is very easy to confuse with other types of theft.

So, for example, the main sign of the theft is that it was done secretly, that is, people did not see the process itself.

However, many citizens confuse theft with robbery and, when contacting the police, incorrectly classify this crime .

Robbery is also a type of theft.

The significant difference between it and theft is that robbery is not carried out secretly, but sometimes even with the use of violence.

The same applies to robbery .

Theft is never accompanied by violence or the threat of such action against the victim.

Qualifying features

These include the presence of certain motives among offenders, namely:

the desire to receive some kind of material benefit;
planning to commit a more serious crime.

If we talk about the second part of this article, then the qualifying features here are the organization of this crime by a whole group of persons.

The offense is considered completed at the moment when the offender has the opportunity to dispose of state signs.

Unreadable license plates: fine or deprivation of rights?

The Center for Automated Recording of Administrative Offenses operates on the roads of the Republic of Crimea.

The Crimean State Traffic Inspectorate reminds: all state registration plates are manufactured in accordance with GOST and must be clearly visible at any time of the day or night:

— at night and in the dark: all symbols only on the rear number plate must be read from 20 meters.

Article 12.2. The Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation provides for administrative liability for driving a vehicle in violation of the rules for installing state registration plates on it.

According to the sanction of Part 1 of Article 12.2 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation, driving a vehicle with unreadable, non-standard or installed state registration plates in violation of the requirements of the state standard, except for the cases provided for in Part 2 of the article, entails a warning or the imposition of an administrative fine in the amount of five hundred rubles.

According to the sanction of Part 2 of Article 12.2 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation, driving a vehicle without state registration plates, as well as driving a vehicle without state registration plates installed in the places provided for this purpose, or driving a vehicle with state registration plates, modified or equipped with the use of devices or materials that impede the identification of state registration plates or allow them to be modified or hidden shall entail the imposition of an administrative fine in the amount of five thousand rubles or deprivation of the right to drive vehicles for a period of one to three months.

According to the sanction of Part 4 of Article 12.2 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation, driving a vehicle with obviously false state registration plates entails deprivation of the right to drive vehicles for a period of six months to one year.

The traffic police squads are aimed at identifying and suppressing such offenses.

The Crimean State Traffic Inspectorate welcomes disciplined drivers.

State Traffic Safety Inspectorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Republic of Crimea

Source

Types of liability

The theft of license plates from a car may entail either administrative or criminal liability for the offender. Let's talk separately about what sanctions apply to a citizen in both cases.

According to Art. 19.37 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation for such an act a fine of 2,000 to 5,000 rubles is imposed. or the citizen will be arrested for 2 weeks.

The court chooses a specific preventive measure based on the severity of the offense committed, as well as all the circumstances of the incident.

According to the article of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, theft of license plates from a car involves the imposition of the following types of punishment:

payment of a fine of up to 200,000 rubles. or salary for the year ;
compulsory work for a period of up to 360 hours ;
corrective labor for up to a year ;
imprisonment in a colony for the same period of time.

If there are such aggravating circumstances as the organization of such an offense by a whole group of citizens according to a prepared plan or an organized group, the preventive measures will be different:

a fine of 300,000 rubles. or salary for 2 years;
compulsory work for 480 hours;
correctional labor for 2 years;
imprisonment for 4 years.

The specific type of punishment, as well as the period of its execution, are determined by the court after all the circumstances of the incident have been taken into account.

What kind of search is this and why can a car’s license plate number get there?

Most often, stolen or lost items are sought. Moreover, this can be not only the entire car, but also its individual parts, for example the engine.

The same story applies to PTS, STS and state license plates. And it is not necessary to steal a number or STS for it to be on the wanted list.

It happens that the previous owner writes a statement about the loss of license plates and documents for the car and a duplicate is made for him. This is legal: such license plates and documents are not considered fake. But in fact, he did not lose the documents with numbers, but gave them to someone or even sold them.

The person who bought such documents and license plates steals a car of a similar brand. To hide the theft, he interrupts the VIN number on the car body and the engine number, if any. It turns out to be a complete double of the car. It's illegal, but it happens.

Art. 326 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation - falsification or destruction of vehicle identification number

Such cars are often resold to unsuspecting people. A database check won't show anything here. There is a car, the contract was drawn up on behalf of the owner, it is not always possible to check the authenticity of the signature on the spot.

Or two “owners” in different parts of the country are selling the same car at the same time. The authorities begin to investigate and open a criminal case. In the traffic police database, a wanted mark is placed on the license plate number, PTS, STS and the basis for the search is written - the number of the criminal case and the contact details of the investigator. During roadside checks, such cars are detained, seized, their license plates are removed and documents are confiscated until a full investigation is completed. A conscientious owner who does not even suspect that a complete copy of his car exists in nature can also be subject to withdrawal.

Source

What to do if it's stolen

If you discover that license plates have been stolen from your car, you should not immediately panic. The first thing to do in such a situation is to contact the nearest law enforcement department.

Attention! Under no circumstances should you use your vehicle for this, since operating a car without a license plate is prohibited, so you will have to call a tow truck first.

To restore the plates, you can either apply for a duplicate or make a new state plate. In the latter case, you will have to go through the procedure of re-registration of the car, but the former also has its drawback: after all, due to the duplicate number plates, the owner may be suspected of crimes that he did not commit.

Therefore, it is better to first contact the police, record the fact of loss of license plates under the article of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation Theft of state license plates, and then go to the traffic police to obtain new ones.

For criminals, such state signs are a particularly tasty morsel, since they can demand a much larger ransom amount.

If a foreign citizen finds himself in such a situation, then he needs to immediately go to the police and write a statement regarding the theft. Next, with all the documents for the vehicle and a certificate from the police, contact your embassy, where they will help the citizen with obtaining a duplicate.

Report to the police about license plate theft

How to write?

A statement to the police is a mandatory document that must be drawn up upon the theft of your license plates.

The first thing you should do is ask for a writing sample.

On A4 paper you must write your passport details, as well as the place where you applied, the number and address of the police station.

Then in the middle of the sheet you write the word “statement”.

Later you begin to describe all the circumstances that led to the theft of numbers.

The information itself about the license plates, about the evidence you found at the crime scene.

The key is to keep your narrative short and clear .

When and where to apply?

You must submit an application to the police department to which you applied, preferably at your place of residence .

This will make it easier for police officers to navigate, find the necessary evidence and trace the route of criminals.

How are offenders tracked?

Traffic police officers monitor compliance with the rules for using state signs; automatic cameras installed on the roads cannot yet recognize the absence of license plates. If the violation only provides for a fine for the lack of license plates on the car and items falling under this definition, the decision remains with the traffic police officers.

If an alternative to a fine is deprivation of rights, then a protocol is drawn up on the spot and the case is sent to court. The protocol signed by the driver must indicate the reason why there is no state sign on the car or it cannot be read. Experienced motorists are advised to indicate that the car was inspected before leaving and that the license plates were present, and also to make their proposals for solving the problem of recording license plates on vehicles. Sometimes these actions can help you stay behind the wheel for the coming months.

We are looking for numbers on our own

Inspect the area around the car within a radius of 150 meters . Pay special attention to holes in walls, landfills (if there are any nearby), playgrounds, benches, and trees. Don't care what others think about you. Explore the area, look for numbers.

Thieves never take the license plates with them, because this is evidence for which criminal punishment is given - God forbid, the police department notices... Thieves hide the plates in nearby places that can be described to the victim over the phone. For example:

– Your number is located behind the blue garage, which is to the left of the car.

– The number is in the hollow of the tree where you parked.

– The number is behind the trash can.

– The number is on the roof of the transformer booth.

Take your time. I know of many cases where numbers were found within half an hour by the owner.

Return time : 15-30 minutes.

Disadvantages of this method : the numbers may not be detected, as in my case.

Traffic violation

If the driver does not drive a moped, tram or trolleybus, then his vehicle must have a state-issued license plate. Driving without license plates is prohibited; this fact is enshrined in the traffic rules, clause 2. A violation of this rule is considered:

Complete lack of numbers.
Absence of one (for example, driving without a rear license plate).
The number plate is dirty, preventing it from being recognized.
Fixing state numbers in places that are not intended by the manufacturer for these purposes.
Installation of rooms that have non-standard sizes or shapes.
The use of additional devices that interfere with reading the number.
Use of counterfeit government signs.

Quite often, the driver may not know that he is driving a car without license plates. One of the state signs may get lost along the way; if it is not securely fastened enough, it may be stolen by intruders. Car owners also place numbers behind the front or rear window when the mount breaks or after an accident it is impossible to fix them in the places provided by the manufacturer. However, in all of the above cases, the owner faces a fine for driving without license plates, since it is impossible to use a car without state signs.

Deliberate violations include installing counterfeit license plates or plates belonging to another vehicle. The last trick is often used by car owners whose license plates were stolen, or they did not manage to register a new car on time.

How to avoid a fine?

In order to avoid getting a fine for driving without license plates, you just need to not drive a car with inappropriate state plates or without them. If while driving the driver discovers that he has lost his front or rear license plate, he must go to the nearest traffic police department and leave a statement there. It describes the details of the incident. Traffic police officers issue the motorist with a document confirming the acceptance of the application, with which you can drive without license plates for 10 days and not be afraid of a fine.

During this time, you need to order duplicate license plates. Manufacturing is carried out by special organizations, the cost of their services is 1500-2500 rubles. Duplicates of license plates are made according to the documents provided; there is no need to register the received license plates with the traffic police. It is also necessary to obtain a duplicate number if the state signs used:

dents, cracks, and scratches have appeared that make it difficult to read the number;
the paint is damaged;
stains have appeared that can no longer be wiped off.