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Crimes Against Property II

What are crimes against property? Unfortunately, we live at a time when crime is very much a part of our society. As such, it is important to know about crimes against property and all the other crimes prevalent today so that we can arm ourselves with what’s going on around us and know what we can do if and when we encounter or become direct victims of these crimes.

EMBEZZLEMENT

Embezzlement is committed when one fraudulently converts a property while under rightful possession of it. Conversion here is an act that interferes with the rightful possession of the true owner. The possession by the accused means “constructive possession” only. This is not actual possession of the property but control over it either directly or through another person.

Embezzlement is distinguished from larceny in that it involves rightful possession of the property by the accused at the time of misappropriation or conversion. This felony involves a violation of trust. In some states, however, larceny and embezzlement overlap in some statutes. Another minor distinction between the two is that larceny involves even just a slight movement of the property while embezzlement entails actual conversion of the property.

It is also different from swindling because the latter involves taking possession of the property under false pretense. In embezzlement, there is full trust and confidence in the accused by the rightful owner.

Elements of this crime are: a) the property must belong to somebody other than the accused such as an employer, b) there must be intent to defraud the owner at the time of conversion, c) the accused must be in rightful possession of the property as in the case of employees or representatives who were entrusted with it and d) that the property must be converted after the accused has been entrusted with it.

EXTORTION (BLACKMAIL)

Extortion involves the taking away of property by threat. It differs from robbery in that the threat is not of immediate violence but one of future harm to the victim’s person, loved ones, reputation or property.

A celebrated case of extortion was one related to the Tylenol deaths in 1982, where seven individuals died as a result of ingesting Tylenol capsules containing cyanide. The accused wrote a letter of extortion to the distributor of the medicine demanding a million dollars in exchange for an end to the killings. The accused was never charged for the deaths of the victims due to lack of evidence that he was the one who placed cyanide inside the Tylenol capsules. But he went to jail for extortion.

RECEIVING OR CONCEALING STOLEN PROPERTY

This is buying or receiving property known to have been stolen. Receiving means to take under control like buying or concealing it. Stolen property are those obtained through larceny, embezzlement or false pretenses. The receiver must be certain or almost certain that the property is stolen. The receiver’s knowledge can be inferred from the time and place of delivery and other circumstances that may give a clue about the source of the goods or property.

This offense ranges from a misdemeanor to a felony. Previous convictions and the amount of the goods are some of the bases to determine if the case is a misdemeanor or a felony.

UNAUTHORIZED USE OF VEHICLE (JOYRIDING)

This crime is operating the motor vehicle of another person without his permission for the use of the accused or another person. This is considered a misdemeanor offense. Motor vehicles would include, cars, trucks, buses, motorcycles, motor scooters or snowmobiles. Farm and construction equipment, airplanes and motorboats are not included in the list of motor vehicles.

Joyriding can have serious consequences such as harm to the driver, passengers, other innocent people or even properties. In other words, it is a threat to public safety. One does not need to do harm, though to be accused of this crime. Even the passengers involved in joyriding may also be liable. Offenders are usually minors.

Joyriding is different from theft of vehicles because in the former, the accused does not intend to keep the vehicle permanently.