Scrap metal theft is a secret form of taking someone else's property, one of the most common illegal acts.
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In order for an act to be recognized as theft, it must satisfy the following criteria:
- it must be theft;
- such theft of scrap metal must be secret;
- when committing the act, violence or the threat of its use was not used (for example, threats to security guards);
- there was no authority to dispose of the item of theft.
Important!
if the theft is carried out openly, then this entails much more serious consequences - urgently consult with a lawyer
Important!
Theft can be recognized as both a crime and a misdemeanor
Having decided what Scrap Metal Theft is, you should find out for yourself what the amount of the theft was, more or less than 2,000 rubles.
Important!
How correctly the scrap metal is assessed will determine the choice - criminal or administrative liability awaits a person for such theft, so be sure to consult a professional lawyer.
You can almost always return an item!
The main thing is to know the procedure and use the law correctly. Get information for free from lawyers via chat (bottom right ↘️)
You can do this using this link, or in the form on this site at the bottom right.
What article?
Responsibility for this act is provided for in Art. 158 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. It is considered as theft of property committed alone or with the help of accomplices secretly. In this case, the seizure occurs free of charge, and the criminal appropriates things, money, etc., belonging to another citizen.
Theft always causes damage to the owner, and the punishment partly depends on the amount. The law contains the wording “significant damage,” which means theft that greatly affected the property status of the victim.
Certain signs of a crime
In some cases, theft is accompanied by additional circumstances, which include:
- causing large damage (amount not less than 5 thousand rubles), and the victim must provide evidence that it is really significant. In practice, documentary evidence is not required;
- unlawful entry into a home or other premises. This circumstance provides grounds for qualifying the actions of the criminal under Part 2 of Art. 158 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.
Internet theft
More and more different criminal schemes are being developed by scammers on the Internet. Those who think that they will profit from the trust of other citizens are also mistaken.
To determine the degree of guilt, the court takes into account all the details and additional information - goals, methods of fraud and motives. However, only a proven stolen amount of at least 5,000 rubles. is considered a reason to open a criminal case.
However, do not forget that if fraudsters regularly engage in theft, but commit thefts for a smaller amount of 5 thousand rubles, then this is taken into account, and you can also be subject to criminal charges, rather than paying just a small administrative fine.
Decriminalization of petty thefts up to 5,000 rubles
Many people believe that the article punishing theft of up to 5 thousand rubles has been removed from criminal legislation, which means that responsibility can be avoided, but this is not at all true. Theft remains an illegal act, and you will still have to answer for it. The nuance is that theft of money or things worth less than 2,500 rubles is punishable under Art. 7.27. Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation. Criminal liability arises only if the same theft is repeated, or when the amount of the stolen goods is more than 2.5 thousand rubles.
The misconception regarding the figure of 5,000 rubles arose due to changes in legislation regarding significant damage. Liability under Part 2 of Art. 158 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation provides for theft of an amount of 5 thousand and repeated theft of 2.5 thousand rubles. This will result in certain sanctions:
- a fine of up to 200 thousand rubles, or in the amount of the salary or other income of the accused for a period of up to 18 months;
- compulsory work for up to 480 hours;
- correctional labor for up to 2 years;
- forced labor for up to 5 years with or without restriction of freedom for up to 1 year;
- imprisonment for up to 5 years.
Theft of property in the amount of 2,500 to 5,000 rubles provides for liability under Part 1 of Art. 158 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation:
- a fine of up to 80 thousand rubles or in the amount of the salary or other income of the perpetrator for a period of up to 6 months;
- compulsory work for up to 360 hours;
- correctional labor for up to 1 year;
- restriction of freedom up to 2 years;
- forced labor for up to 2 years;
- arrest for up to 4 months, or imprisonment for up to 2 years.
The punishment is determined by the court taking into account all the circumstances of the case.
Note!
Theft in an amount up to 2.5 thousand rubles is punishable administratively. A similar theft committed repeatedly, or theft of 2.5 to 5 thousand rubles, is prosecuted in accordance with criminal law.
On the issue of criminal liability for theft of property from relatives
It makes no sense to oblige law enforcement officials to initiate criminal prosecution if the fact of theft from relatives is revealed, because the implementation of the provisions of the criminal law will go “contrary” to the interests of the individual (victim family members of the criminal)... Theft from relatives should be punishable only at the request of the victim parties (relatives of the offender).
Author: Sumachev A.V.
Before turning to the immediate subject of our conversation, I would like to note that a comprehensive study of the institution of private criminal prosecution from the standpoint of substantive (criminal) and procedural law allows us to assert the imperfection of legislative decisions in terms of regulating relevant criminal and criminal procedural relations. Here we will deliberately leave these issues without consideration, because we have already written about this more than once [1]. But we still have to touch on some aspects of this problem. Let us dwell, for example, on the theft of property from relatives.
So, criminal prosecution in cases of theft of someone else’s property generally refers to cases of public prosecution (Part 5 of Article 20 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation), that is, initiated without the desire (statement) of the injured party (victim). This provision is not fundamentally objectionable, although it requires some clarification.
Firstly, within the framework of the study of the institution of private prosecution (private prosecution), there are quite often proposals to classify the theft of other people’s property committed by close relatives as private (“unofficial”) crimes.
Secondly, the domestic legislator already has relevant experience in this area (in the event of a property crime being committed by a family member or relative, criminal proceedings can only be initiated if there is a corresponding application from the victim)[2].
Thirdly, there is no doubt that legislative regulations must be socially determined and should not contradict generally accepted rules and norms. And here it would be appropriate to provide some data based on the results of our empirical research.
As a result of the survey, a little more than a thousand people aged 17 to 46 years were interviewed in a ratio of men to women on average 1:1 (50.9% and 49.1%, respectively) [3]. When asked about the punishability of theft committed by children from their parents, respondents’ opinions were distributed as follows: men with children – 1.3%, men without them – 1.2%; women, respectively, 0.9% and 1.1% (total 4.5%). For the impunity of such theft: men with children - 10.2%, without children - 23.5%; women - 15.3% and 15.6% (total 63.7%). The question of the punishability of such actions caused difficulties for 19.1% (8.5% among men and 10.6% among women). 11.8% of men and women spoke in favor of a different solution to this issue. At the same time, the respondents’ answers were as follows: we’ll figure it out ourselves within the family (9.8%); Let's turn to the local police officer (another police officer we know) so that he can have a conversation with the minor “thief” (0.9%); theft should be punishable if committed on a “large” scale (0.4%); theft should be punishable only if the family member who committed the theft is a drug addict (0.7%). Consequently, only a small part of respondents categorically declare the need to punish theft from relatives (4.5%), which clearly indicates a significant level of latency for this kind of theft.
Theft of 5000 rubles
Theft of the amount of 5,000 rubles is assessed under Part 1 of Art. 158 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, but administrative sanctions can be applied when the crime is committed for the first time and the perpetrator has not been charged in other cases before.
The accused may try to have his case dismissed. This is possible subject to a peaceful resolution of the case, if the culprit compensates the victim for damages and compensates him for moral damage. The victim must write and submit an application to close the case due to reconciliation of the parties, and issue a receipt for receipt of payments. The accused must draw up the same petition and present it in court.
If a thief commits a crime not for the first time, the case will be considered under Part 2 of Art. 158 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, if the amount of the stolen is significant damage to the victim.
Thefts and changes in legislation
The punishment directly depends on whether the person stole for the first time or repeatedly. If the amount of damage to the victim is considered significant, and this is not the first time the thief has committed the theft, then Art. 158 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, part 2. The main article, which reveals all types of punishments and criminal liability for theft - 158 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.
The crime is considered completely completed when the criminal was able to use the stolen property (for example, sold it). If he fell into the hands of justice before this fact, then the crime is classified as kidnapping and theft.
This topic received particular interest in 2016, when State Duma deputy I. A. Yarovaya introduced draft federal law No. 771 893 6 “On Amendments to Legislative Acts of the Russian Federation.” A response to this was received from the Government of the Russian Federation, and then the law came into force.
I. A. Yarovaya emphasized that pickpocketing, apartment thefts and group thefts will not have anything to do with this project. The bill was supported by the Government and was recommended to be adopted in the first reading. The hearing began in 2015.
What will happen for stealing money less than 5 thousand rubles?
In this case, punishment is provided in accordance with Art. 7.27 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation, if the act was committed for the first time and the accused has not previously committed crimes. There are many nuances here. For example, theft of up to a thousand rubles is regarded as petty theft.
The crime is considered completed if the thief was able to dispose of the property. If he was captured before this, the act will only be qualified as attempted theft.
Criminal liability arises for theft of property worth more than 2,500 rubles. Its cost is determined by expert assessment or according to purchase prices.
Petty theft entails a fine of five times the value of the stolen property, but not less than 1,000 rubles. As an alternative, arrest for 15 days (maximum measure) can be applied.
Theft in the amount of 2,500 to 5,000 rubles is considered criminal. Punishment occurs under Part 1 of Art. 158 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, and threatens the offender with a fine of up to 80 thousand rubles or imprisonment in a correctional institution for up to 2 years. Aggravating circumstances increase the measure of restraint, and the case is qualified under Part 2 of this norm. The punishment is increased up to imprisonment for up to 5 years.
When can liability be avoided?
In some cases, you can avoid punishment for an act, for example, when attempting petty theft up to 1000 rubles. The administrative code does not provide for liability for such an act. Thus, if stolen goods are confiscated from a thief, he can get by with a simple apology. Most likely, the injured party will demand payment of a fine, but such demands will be unlawful.
You can try to avoid punishment for a more serious crime, but for this it is better to contact an experienced lawyer and try to come to an agreement with the victim. First of all, the accused must make reparations and apologize. Then you will need to compensate for moral damages in the amount assigned to the victims. All actions must be documented. In order for a criminal case to be dropped, the perpetrator must petition the court for reconciliation between the parties.
Additionally, it should be noted that passing a sentence means entering data about the crime and the criminal into the Information Center of the Internal Affairs Directorate. This scenario is possible for any theft that carries criminal liability. In order to avoid possible troubles in the future (employment or study), the perpetrator should take all possible measures to achieve reconciliation with the victim and close the criminal case. We advise you to contact our qualified lawyers by phone or online.
