In accordance with the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, “extortion” should be understood as one of the types of criminal acts, the punishment for which, depending on the presence/absence of aggravating circumstances, provides for up to 15 years of imprisonment.
Having become a victim of such a crime, the first priority is to contact law enforcement agencies (police, prosecutor's office) with a corresponding statement.
In this article we will tell you how to draw up a statement of extortion, where it should be submitted, what documentary evidence to attach to it, and what penalties to demand in relation to the accused person.
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The legislative framework
Everything related to extortion is described in Article 163 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. This includes situations when a person is asked to give him money or other valuable property just like that or in exchange for something, without having any legal grounds for doing so.
In case of refusal to comply with the requirements, the attacker threatens to cause physical or psychological harm to the health, as well as the life of the victim or his loved ones. The term of punishment, which is determined by the judge at the hearing, depends on the presence or absence of aggravating circumstances.
What threats are punishable?
If one person threatened another, his actions will not necessarily become the subject of a criminal case. The application will be accepted from the victim who was promised to be deprived of his life or physical health.
The Criminal Code of the Russian Federation only covers threats that indicate the possible infliction of grievous bodily harm. The last concept includes the following:
- disablement;
- facial disfigurement;
- causing traumatic brain injury;
- organ loss or complete dysfunction.
It is important to distinguish between a threat to kill and an attempted murder. These compounds are differentiated by the motives of the criminal. For example, if a person held another person at gunpoint, but never fired, the case falls under Art. 119. If he did not take the life of his victim only because neighbors rushed to help, this is attempted murder.
Evidence base
The fact of extortion must be confirmed.
The evidence base is based on the following:
- written demands on any medium;
- recording a telephone conversation;
- a recording from a voice recorder or other devices, which can be used to determine what the criminal is saying to the victim.
Call recording.
If the victim does not have all of the above, witness testimony can serve as confirmation. The collection of evidence is carried out by the injured party or its representative, for example, a lawyer. It often takes a lot of time and effort to identify the initiator of a crime.
After submitting the evidence and the victim’s statement to the internal affairs bodies, a pre-investigation check is carried out. Its purpose is to confirm the presence or absence of a crime. If a violation of the law is proven, the case is transferred to the investigator for proceedings and then sent to court.
They extort money, what to do Khiv
If they are not enough, it makes sense to consult a lawyer. Our company provides all types of legal services: from division of property to criminal cases. A few more advantages: We primarily focus on the client’s wishes, since together with you we are interested in a successful outcome. Employees not only prepare documents, but also provide consultation along the way, explaining unclear points. If you want to get advice from a lawyer or a legal opinion on written documents that require time to study and develop (for example, an investment agreement or a series of documents for organizing the construction of communications in the DNP, etc.), it is better to leave copies of the documents in advance (or send them by fax or Internet networks). A number of our lawyers are candidates of science. We have received awards from the legal community. All information provided by you to the lawyer, as well as the very fact of contacting us, are attorney-client secrets and are protected by the federal law “On advocacy and the legal profession in the Russian Federation.” Thank you for being with us these years! By the decision of the Khimki City Court of the Moscow Region dated July 31, 2019, the claim of the Bureau’s client for the recovery of property from someone else’s illegal possession and the recovery of legal costs was satisfied.
Measures against ransomware
Some people who encounter such a crime are ready to give the extortionist everything he wants. However, this method of solving the problem cannot be called correct. Firstly, there are no guarantees that the criminal will not carry out his threats and will not cause harm to the injured party or his loved ones. Secondly, extortion can continue indefinitely, as the attacker realizes that he has found an easy way to get rich.
Consultation with a lawyer.
Therefore, you should adhere to the following sequence of actions:
- Find a way to delay the transfer of money. Care must be taken not to arouse suspicion among the extortionist.
- Get advice from a lawyer. A lawyer will help you file a police report regarding this fact and give useful advice.
- The content of the application is of great importance. It is necessary to set out in detail the circumstances of what happened: where, when and on what grounds the criminal demanded money, what amount was agreed upon, the nature of the threats, and so on.
- The application is sent to the nearest police department. It must be registered in the appropriate book, and the victim must be given an entry number.
- After this, the police do not have the right to refuse to consider the application. They are obliged to initiate operational search activities, during which the transfer of money will be organized.
- Next, the applicant becomes the victim, and the detainee becomes the accused. The police are continuing to investigate the case to clarify all the circumstances.
They extort money, what should I do?
- The use of violence against the victim or her relatives (beating, mutilation, murder). The most powerful way of pressing: often a person “breaks down”, fearing for weak and vulnerable family members (children, women, elderly parents).
- Destruction or damage to the property of the victim or her family - or even someone else’s, for which the victim is responsible (for example, they may demand money from a security guard, threatening to burn the object he is protecting if they do not comply).
- Dissemination of defamatory information. A man is blackmailed with important information that he wanted to hide from prying eyes, but it became known to criminals - and now they are demanding payment for silence.
- Dissemination of any information that could cause harm to the victim or her family or friends (for example, an official from the administration of an orphanage or guardianship authorities threatens to reveal the secret of adoption, and the adoptive parents wanted to hide this fact both from the grown-up child and from the public).
How to properly file a complaint about extortion
The application must be sufficiently informative so that the investigator receives all the information necessary to solve the crime and answers to all his questions. Therefore, you need to make the application correctly.
Structure and pattern
The application is written according to structure.
Sample police report.
The following points should be included:
- name of the body of the Ministry of Internal Affairs;
- information about the injured party, contact details (telephone numbers, address);
- information about the offender, if available;
- the nature of the demands and threats;
- method of transferring funds (place, time, terms of the “transaction”);
- information about where, when and under what circumstances the meeting with the attacker took place, a note with demands was found, etc.;
- a list of people who can confirm the fact of extortion, who were nearby at the time of receiving the letter or personal meeting with the criminal;
- evidence and other information that will help in considering the case.
In order to correctly compose an application, use the template in the picture below.
Police officers do not have the right to refuse to accept an application without giving reasons. If this happens, you should contact higher authorities, for example, the prosecutor's office.
Where to contact
When submitting an application, you must have a passport or other document confirming your identity. To resolve your issue, you need to contact any police officer or the duty station. The latter option is faster, since here the application will be immediately registered, and the victim will be given a contract number.
To the police
By law, a person can make a statement to any employee: an operative or investigator, a sergeant or general. He, in turn, does not have the right to refuse, no matter in what form the application is submitted - written or oral. After the application is accepted, within three working days the victim must be notified of the decision to initiate a criminal case or refusal for any reason.
Contacting the police.
To the prosecutor's office
Most often the complaint is referred to the police. Even if it is submitted to the prosecutor's office, it will still be redirected to the nearest department. But there are situations when the prosecutor’s office independently examines crimes and sends documents to the courts.
It is recommended to contact these authorities in the following cases:
- The initial appeal to the police department was unsuccessful. If the application was refused to be accepted or a criminal case was initiated due to lack of evidence, in the opinion of the investigator. You can also write a complaint about inaction.
- The extortionist holds a government or other management position. Only the prosecutor's office deals with crimes involving this category of persons.
Questions and answers
What to do if someone extorts money in a pre-trial detention center
Once in a pre-trial detention center, especially in Russia, be prepared for the fact that they will try to extort money from you, and this is in the best case! As practice shows, they extort not only financial resources, but also cars, and even real estate left in the wild! The worst thing is that the prisoners themselves rarely covet such good things. As a rule, the supervisors themselves have their eye on the property.
If this happens to a prisoner, he is extremely unlucky. The only option is to try to resolve the issue with your lawyer, if, of course, he is an intelligent specialist in this field of activity. Only he will have to pay. Another option is to try to contact your loved ones in freedom so that they can work with the public. The same media loves such stories, but the pre-trial detention center employees do not like special attention to their nature.
What to do if they extort money in the army
Extortion of money in the army is not uncommon. Moreover, this concept is so widespread in our Russian army that it somehow becomes uneasy. However, there are ways to resolve the issue. For example, there are special security agencies in the military, the so-called special department. Even if we are talking about a private, in any case, these guys will not refuse another stick. In general, it is best to conduct your own investigation, a sensible one, or use the help of an investigator.
The best option is to catch the extortionist red-handed. After all, the crime itself becomes such when the extortionist makes his demands and threatens. To prove this, you need witnesses, in this case, colleagues. This is a separate issue, since not everyone will want to take such a risk. Plus, everything else, the readings easily change. As has happened many times in court. However, extortion in the army is really being suppressed, and a significant number of scum are already behind bars or are under investigation for such acts.
They extort money from a child, what should I do?
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This is probably the most common method of extortion. Children are usually very cruel. The law of the jungle applies at school, that is, the survival of the fittest. And if you are faced with the fact that your child is being extorted money at school, then you should not let everything go.
- Try to talk to the parents of the offenders first. If their child did not take after them, and they are adequate people, they will do everything possible to ensure that this never happens again. Naturally, first explain the whole situation and threaten to contact the school administration, or even the police. In theory, everything should be fine;
- contact your class teacher directly, since, in fact, this is not only your family problem, but also a school problem. The class teacher is obliged to take action, contact the principal, call the parents of the extortionist and talk to them, explain everything that happened. If this does not help, then there is only one option left;
- It is better to contact the police when the offenders of your child are already 14 years old, that is, they can already bear criminal liability. In this case, they will go under Article 163 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation;
- There is another way, but we strongly do not recommend resorting to it. We are talking about a personal conversation with extortionists. But there are pitfalls here, because if you go too far, and this is quite feasible, you can become a defendant yourself and get into a lot of problems.
Punishment for extortion
The term of punishment and the amount of the fine depend on the circumstances of the crime:
- Extortion on a large scale without the use of violence (physical or psychological). The term of imprisonment is up to 4 years. Additionally, the convicted person must pay a fine of 80,000 rubles.
- Extortion on a large scale, committed by a group of persons by prior conspiracy, with the use of violence. Punishment: up to 7 years in prison. Convicts are also required to pay a fine of up to 500,000 rubles.
- Extortion on an especially large scale, committed by a group of persons by prior conspiracy, with aggravating circumstances (causing grave or especially grave harm to the health of the injured party). The punishment ranges from 7 to 15 years in prison. A fine of RUB 1 million may be required.
Citizens who have reached the age of 16 are subject to criminal liability under Article 163 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.
