By complicity in a crime we mean intentional (intent is important) joint participation of more than two persons in the commission of a crime. This applies only to those violations that are committed intentionally.
Participation in a crime has the following objective signs:
- The act must be committed by several persons who are able to bear criminal responsibility for it.
- Activities should be joint. The point is that the actions of one person are supplemented by those of other persons. The actions of the partners must be causally related to the result of the crime.
- The concept of complicity in a crime concerns only what happened before the end of such an act.
Subjective symptoms are as follows:
- We can only talk about crimes committed intentionally.
- All participants in the crime should be sufficiently aware of what they are doing. Unity of purpose is important.
Complicity in a crime is often confused with mediocre harm. The second is always committed together with persons who simply cannot be held criminally responsible. In this case, the offender is the perpetrator of the crime, even if he did not commit it himself.
The institution of complicity in a crime is important in that:
- establishes responsibility for those crimes that are committed not by one entity, but by several at once;
- Helps determine the degree of guilt of each individual accomplice;
- establishes the signs (subjective and objective) that are characteristic of each of the crimes committed by several entities.
Participation in a crime is of several types. Below they are considered in more detail. To begin with, we note that complicity in a crime can be complex or simple. In the simple case, each of the partners fulfills only the objective side of the crime (all actors in this case are called accomplices), and in the complex case, the roles are distributed. They are distinguished by the following:
- performer;
- instigator;
- accomplice;
- the organizer.
The performer is recognized only as the person who directly committed the crime or, with joint participation, used for its commission those persons who, by virtue of certain provisions of the law, cannot be held criminally liable (we are talking about minors, incapable, minors).
The organizer, respectively, is the person who organized the crime. He can also lead his execution. The organizer is dangerous because it is from him that the initiative to commit a crime proceeds. His responsibility is heightened. He is responsible for all those actions that a group of persons committed, acting in the implementation of his plans.
The instigator is the person who persuaded someone else to commit a criminal offense by any means. Such means include threats, persuasion, and the like. The instigator must be aware of what crime the people are calling for. Note that criminal acts are not general appeals that are not addressed to anyone specific.
An accomplice is a person who has directly assisted in the commission of a crime. Perhaps aiding not only physical, but also intellectual. Note that the first is material in nature and is expressed in the provision of any means, and the second is expressed in the provision of information, information, data and so on. Aides are often confused with instigators. Yes, they are similar in many respects, but the important fact is that accomplices to committing crimes do not persuade anyone and do not try to persuade anyone. This is their main difference.