Due to the fact that in recent years the growth of crimes against property has increased in our country, many citizens of our state began to wonder what is the main difference between theft and robbery? After all, a person who has suffered from the deed must correctly present information to the police on how the crime was committed, and for this it is necessary to master at least the basic aspects of law. There is no doubt that the difference between theft and robbery is manifested in the fact that in the first case, the criminal act is carried out secretly, and in the second - openly, and usually in those places where it is very crowded. Read more about all this in this article.
Main
Qualification of theft and robbery usually causes difficulties for citizens without a legal education. Indeed, in the implementation of these acts, the attacker pursues the same goal - this is taking possession of someone else's thing without returning it to its owner. But what, nevertheless, is the main difference between theft and robbery? The answer to this question can be found in the Criminal Code. Indeed, this collection of laws contains definitions of these two concepts. Based on the meaning of the norms of Article 158 of the Criminal Code, theft is a secret theft of property. For example, an attacker pulled a purse from a victim’s bag and went unnoticed.
At the same time, article 161 of the Criminal Code indicates that robbery is defined as open theft of another's property. For example, a criminal pulled out a purse from a victim’s bag, and another person saw it, or the victim herself, but they failed to detain the attacker. In this case, the difference between the two acts from each other by the method of their implementation is definitely traced. But, despite this, the perpetrator will be liable under the current law for the commission of any of these crimes.
What is important to know
So, in order to identify the main differences between theft and robbery, it is also necessary to determine their similarity. Indeed, as was indicated earlier, when committing the first and second acts, the attacker is always only interested in taking away the thing from its owner.
Under current law, theft is defined as the secret theft of property. This means that in carrying out malicious intent, the thief prefers to go unnoticed. After all, a thing in this case is seized by a criminal in the absence of its owner or other persons. Although, in practice there are exceptions. For example, such theft of a thing would be considered theft when the offender was spotted by the owner of the property or by other persons, but the attacker believed that no one had seen him. In practice, evidence of a specified act may include:
- video from an outdoor surveillance camera;
- testimony of witnesses who watched what was happening through the window of the apartment.
When carrying out a robbery, a thing is seized from the owner in his presence and other people. In this case, the latter should have been aware of the unlawful actions of the attacker.
It will not be decisive here whether the criminal was resisted or not, because such an act would be qualified as robbery.
A little bit about everything
As mentioned earlier, in the criminal law there is a certain list of criminal acts that are carried out by attackers only for the purpose of gratuitous seizure of other people's property. These primarily include theft, robbery. Robbery, the difference of which from the indicated atrocities is manifested in the method of seizing a thing from its owner, is considered the most serious and serious crime.After all, it is defined as an attack by a criminal on a victim in order to steal her property, carried out under the threat of violence, which is dangerous to the life and health of the injured person. Sanctions for robbery, according to the current Criminal Code, are much more serious than for theft or robbery.
Character traits
Article 158 of the Criminal Code states that property stolen in secret will be considered a theft. Qualifying signs, unlike robbery, are manifested here in the following:
- the act is committed in the absence of the owner of the thing or other citizens;
- the theft is carried out in the presence of the owner of the property, as well as other persons, but imperceptibly for them;
- if the secret theft of a thing takes place in the presence of people who are confident that the removal of the item is completely legal (for example, a thief takes a picture out of the museum under the pretext that he is a master and takes the thing away for restoration);
- the act is carried out with a person who, due to circumstances or characteristics of the body is not able to recognize the wrongfulness of the actions of the attacker;
- the crime is committed in the presence of the owner of the thing, but the latter, realizing the fact of the illegal actions of the guilty person, does not reveal his whereabouts (for example, a person notices a thief from a room, takes refuge from him under a bed or in a closet), thus, the attacker believes that he is acting secretly.
What to do?
Unfortunately, various situations occur in life, and therefore even a law-abiding citizen may find himself in the role of a suspect in the theft of someone else's thing. In such a case, you should immediately seek the help of an experienced and professional lawyer who works in such cases. After all, only a competent lawyer will be able to figure out exactly who committed the theft. Theft, robbery, robbery - the differences between these acts are very significant, therefore, if a person is accused of one of them, but he did not commit it, then the latter simply can not do without consulting an experienced defender. In addition, the suspect should not rely on the help of a state lawyer, because his income does not depend on what the outcome of the investigation will be. Therefore, the latter is not always present with an interest in acquitting the accused.
Thus, if an innocent person is under investigation, then he definitely needs the help of a professional defender who is able to competently defend the interests of the principal not only in law enforcement agencies, but also in court.
People's interest
Many citizens of our country take with interest the information about the atrocities committed, heard on radio or television. But most of the attention of people is attracted by news in which they talk about crimes such as theft and robbery. Indeed, in this case, absolutely anyone can become a victim of an attacker. It is for this reason that people are interested in the question of how these two acts differ from each other? So, robbery is always carried out openly, in the presence of the victim himself and other persons. For example, a criminal who snatched a bag with a purse from a woman’s hands didn’t try to go unnoticed, but only tried to hide with the stolen property. While, during the theft, all the actions of the perpetrator are secret.
But, on what grounds do law enforcement officers conclude that the robbery is non-violent? The difference from theft here is the way the crime is carried out. The property is stolen from the victim openly, but without the use of violence dangerous to life and health.
Finally
After considering crimes aimed at the seizure of another's property, we can draw certain conclusions about what is the difference between theft and robbery. First of all, these two acts differ in the intent of the attacker.
Indeed, when carrying out theft, the guilty person wants to go unnoticed, and even if there are witnesses to the crime, the offender does not know about them.At the same time, when robbing, an attacker openly commits his illegal actions and does not think about the consequences.
In addition, there is a certain level of responsibility for both acts. The punishment for committing these crimes is prescribed in the Criminal Code.
Important
In the performance of official activities, law enforcement officers very often encounter such acts as robbery and theft. What is the difference between these crimes, not only policemen should know, but also citizens who, by their own carelessness, can become victims of intruders.