What is the penalty for unintentionally concealing a crime? Concealment of a crime by an official Article 316 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation with comments

Harboring is one of the types of involvement in a crime: it is not assistance and is not in a causal connection with the crime. Concealing a crime is a serious obstacle to its disclosure and exposure of those responsible, and to compensation for causal damage. Therefore, the law considers such actions criminal.

Object crime is a normal activity of the court, investigation and investigative bodies.

From the objective side this crime is expressed in a pre-promised concealment of a person who has committed a particularly serious crime (Part 5 of Article 15 of the Criminal Code), traces of his criminal activity, instruments or means of committing a crime, or objects and valuables obtained by criminal means.

Concealment is committed only by active actions. Methods of concealment can be very diverse. Usually this physical actions: providing shelter to a criminal, changing it appearance, supplying a false or someone else’s passport, destroying traces of a crime (for example, washing away blood at a crime scene, repairing a car after a collision, etc.), transferring instruments and means of crime to a secluded place, etc.

The so-called intellectual concealment most often provided for by independent offenses (deliberately false denunciation, deliberately false testimony, etc.), but in some cases it can be qualified under Art. 316 CC. For example, if the subject gives deliberately false explanations during the pre-investigation verification of materials and statements.

In cases where concealment is expressed in the concealment and storage of items seized or restricted in civil circulation (narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances, firearms, potent and toxic substances), the act must be qualified under the totality of Art. 316 and articles providing for liability for storage of these items.

If the concealment of a crime is committed by criminal means (for example, property is destroyed, harm is caused to health, documents are falsified, etc.), then the act must also be qualified under a set of articles. If the method of concealment was murder, then what was done is fully covered by paragraph “k” of Part 2 of Art. 105 of the Criminal Code and does not require additional qualifications under Art. 316 CC.

Special types of concealment is the acquisition or sale of property known to be obtained by criminal means (Article 175), legalization (laundering) of funds or other property acquired by criminal means (Article 174, Article 174.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).

If concealment was promised in advance before or during the crime or for other reasons, for example, due to systematic commission, gave reason to count on the help of the subject, then it should be regarded not as a type of involvement, but as complicity in the form complicity, and qualify according to Art. 33 and the corresponding article of the Special Part of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

By design, this composition is formal. A crime is considered completed from the moment a person commits any actions aimed at concealing the criminal himself, traces of his criminal activities, etc., regardless of whether this was successful or not.

From the subjective side concealment can only be committed with direct intent. The guilty person realizes that he is covering up a particularly serious crime, and he wants it.

At the same time, he can be guided by any motives: selfish motives, desire to help loved ones, hostility towards the victim, etc. The motives and purposes of concealment do not affect qualifications and can be taken into account by the court when choosing the type and amount of punishment.

If concealment was committed as a result of physical or mental coercion on the part of criminals, then the question of criminal liability persons are decided according to the rules set out in Art. 40 CC.

Subject crime - a person who has reached the age of 16 years.

Note to Art. 316 of the Criminal Code contains an exception from the number of subjects of concealment. According to it, a person who has not promised in advance to conceal a crime is not subject to criminal liability if he is a spouse or a close relative of the person who committed the crime.

Close relatives parents, children, adoptive parents, adopted children, siblings, grandparents, grandchildren are considered (clause 4 of article 5 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation).

According to Part 2 of Art. 10 of the Family Code of the Russian Federation, the rights and obligations of spouses arise from the date of state registration of marriage in the civil registry office. Therefore, under spouse, not subject to criminal liability for concealment that was not promised in advance, should be understood only as a person who is in a registered marriage with the perpetrator of a particularly serious crime.

However, with special types of concealment, spouses and close relatives respond to general principles(clause “k”, part 2, article 105 of the Criminal Code, article 174, article 174.1, article 175, article 306, article 307 of the Criminal Code, etc.).

If concealment was committed by an official using his official position and entailed the consequences specified in Art. 285 of the Criminal Code, then the act must be qualified only under this article.

At the same time, concealment carried out by a prosecutor, investigator or person conducting an inquiry by illegally releasing a person from criminal liability must be qualified under Art. 300 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

Covering up crimes is one of the forms of obstruction of the administration of justice. It makes it difficult to timely solve a crime and bring the perpetrator to justice. Concealment of a crime is of two types: promised in advance, which is recognized as complicity in a crime in the form of complicity (Article 28 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan), and not promised in advance, which in some cases is subject to liability under Art. 363 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Object Concealment not promised in advance is a normal activity of the bodies of inquiry, preliminary investigation and court to disclose, expose the criminal, and pass a sentence.

Subject of this crime may be instruments or other means of committing a crime, traces of a crime or objects obtained by criminal means.

Objective side This crime is characterized by active actions aimed at concealing the criminal, instruments and other means of committing a crime, traces of a crime or items obtained by criminal means, as well as making a promise in advance to purchase or sell such items.

By harboring a criminal we should understand providing him with shelter, means of transportation, supplying him with false documents, providing assistance in changing his appearance, etc.

Concealment of instruments and means of committing a crime is the concealment of weapons and other items with the help of which a crime was committed, or their destruction or modification. A weapon is any object, including a weapon, that is used to directly influence the subject of a crime or the victim. The means of committing a crime are understood as such objects, the use of which facilitates the commission of a crime, for example, a car, communications equipment and other objects.

Concealing traces of a crime can occur, for example, when destroying traces of blood, fingerprints at a crime scene, replacing the bumper of a car in which a pedestrian was hit, etc. Concealment of items obtained by criminal means can be carried out by concealing them, transporting them to another place, destroying them, changing their appearance, falsifying the factory mark, part number, etc.

Concealment that was not promised in advance can be carried out both immediately after the end of the crime being concealed, and after a certain time has passed, when the threat of exposing the criminal looms.

In the legal literature, there are different opinions on the question of whether criminal liability for intellectual concealment is possible. A number of scientists deny this possibility and believe that concealment can only be carried out by committing physical actions". M.A. Kaufman, whose opinion on this issue we support, believes that intellectual concealment poses the same danger as physical concealment and should be recognized as a crime on a par with physical one. To substantiate his position, he gives an example when a person deliberately directs persecutors criminal law enforcement officers in the opposite direction 2. B.T. Razgildiev is also liable under the article in question of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan for intellectual concealment 3.

Responsibility is provided for under the article in question of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan for the concealment, not promised in advance, of not any, but only two categories of crimes: grave and especially grave. For concealment of crimes belonging to other categories that was not promised in advance, liability is not provided for under this article of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

If the concealment is systematic, which gives the perpetrator reason to count on assistance in committing a crime, then such actions should be qualified as complicity.

Subjective side This crime is characterized by guilt in the form of intent. The subject must be aware that he is hiding a criminal who has committed a grave or especially grave crime, instruments or means of committing just such crimes, traces of a crime or objects obtained as a result of the commission of grave or particularly grave crimes.

The motives for this crime can be very diverse (self-interest, fear of the criminal, revenge on the justice system, family, friendly relations with the person being sheltered, etc.). The purpose, as well as the motive for concealment, lies outside the scope of the crime and is taken into account by the court when assigning punishment.

Subject This crime may be committed by a sane person who has reached the age of 16.

A note to the analyzed article of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan establishes the provision that a person is not subject to criminal liability for concealment of a crime committed by his spouse or close relative that was not promised in advance.

This crime is similar to a witness or victim giving knowingly false testimony, an expert giving a knowingly false conclusion, or a translator making a knowingly incorrect translation in order to mislead law enforcement officers, judges and shield the real criminal.

In the legal literature there are different opinions on the issue of qualification of these actions. Some authors believe that such actions should be qualified as a set of crimes: under the article of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan on liability for concealment and under the article of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan on liability for knowingly false testimony, expert opinion or incorrect translation 1 . Others believe that such actions should be regarded as concealment that was not promised in advance 1 . Such perjury is a type of intellectual concealment, for which liability is provided under a special norm. Since in such cases it is possible to see the presence of competition between the general and special norms of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan, in our opinion, it should be applied special norm- art. 352 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan (Knowingly false testimony, expert opinion or incorrect translation).

Concealment that was not promised in advance also has similarities with the acquisition or sale of property that was obviously obtained by criminal means that was not promised in advance (Article 183 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan). The difference is that when committing the crime in question, the person hides not only those specified in Part 5 of Art. 28 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan, objects, but also the criminal himself, as well as traces of the crime. According to Art. 183 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan provides for liability for concealing only items obtained by criminal means.

Concealment of especially serious crimes not promised in advance is punishable by a fine of up to two hundred thousand rubles or in the amount wages or other income of the convicted person for a period of up to eighteen months, or forced labor for a term of up to two years, or arrest for a term of up to six months, or imprisonment for a term of up to two years.

Note.

A person is not subject to criminal liability for concealment of a crime committed by his spouse or close relative who was not promised in advance.

Commentary edited by Esakova G.A.

1. The objective side is expressed in the form of actions for the concealment of especially serious crimes not promised in advance, which manifests itself in concealing the fact of such a crime, objects, traces, the person who committed the crime, destruction of the instruments of the crime, etc. Unlike complicity in the form of aiding and abetting, acts of concealment are promised in time and committed after the commission of the crime.

2. Concealment of a particularly serious crime by giving knowingly false testimony or refusal to testify is qualified under Art. 307, 308 of the Criminal Code, respectively.

3. The note stipulates that a person is not subject to criminal liability for concealment of a crime committed by his spouse or close relative who was not promised in advance, which corresponds to the provisions of Part 1 of Art. 51 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation.

Commentary on Article 316 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation

Commentary edited by Rarog A.I.

1. The social danger of a crime is that it interferes with the normal activities of the preliminary investigation bodies and the court in solving the crime, exposing the criminal and bringing him to criminal responsibility.

2. The objective side of the crime consists of actions to conceal at least one particularly serious crime.

3. Concealment of crimes means the concealment, not promised in advance, of a criminal, instruments or means of committing a crime, traces of a crime or objects obtained by criminal means. Concealing a criminal consists, for example, in providing him with a home, a place to hide, transport, false documents, changing the appearance of the criminal, etc. Concealing funds or instruments for committing a crime means placing them in a place inaccessible to detection by law enforcement agencies, destroying, altering, selling, etc. Concealing evidence of a crime may include, for example, destroying clothing with traces of blood or objects with fingerprints.

4. According to the meaning of the law, criminal liability arises only for the so-called physical concealment of a crime.

5. The law provides for criminal liability only for concealment of a crime that was not promised in advance. Concealment promised in advance, i.e. promised before or during the commission of a crime, concealment of a criminal, instruments or means of committing a crime, traces of a crime or objects obtained by criminal means constitutes complicity in a crime and is a type of intellectual complicity.

6. Concealment of a crime, as well as concealment of objects obtained by obviously criminal means, can be recognized as complicity when the perpetrator, due, for example, to systematically committing them in advance, i.e. before the start of the crime, counted on such assistance (see, for example: paragraph 13 of the Resolution of the Plenum Supreme Court USSR dated July 11, 1972 No. 4 “On judicial practice in cases of theft of state and public property”).

7. The crime is considered completed from the moment the concealer commits the appropriate actions.

8. Subjective side – direct intent.

9. The subject of the crime is a person who has reached the age of 16 years.

10. According to the note to Art. 316 of the Criminal Code exempts spouses and close relatives of the person who committed the crime from criminal liability for concealment of especially serious crimes not promised in advance. To close relatives Art. 5 of the Code of Criminal Procedure includes parents, children, adoptive parents, adopted children, siblings, grandparents and grandchildren.

Commentary on Article 316 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation

Commentary edited by A.V. Brilliantova

The object of the crime is the interests of justice.

The social danger of concealment is that it prevents the timely detection of crimes and bringing the perpetrators to criminal responsibility, creates conditions for impunity for these individuals and their continuation of criminal activities.

Concealment is the only type of involvement in a crime remaining in the criminal law, i.e. activities related to the commission of a crime, but not constituting assistance to it and not being in a causal and culpable connection with the criminal result of the act being covered up. Thus, concealment is not complicity in a crime.

The objective side of concealment lies in the non-promised concealment of a criminal who has committed a particularly serious crime, traces, instruments and means of such a crime, as well as items obtained by criminal means. Thus, concealment is not complicity in a crime.

This understanding is fully consistent with previously established judicial practice, according to which persons whose actions were associated with concealing a crime, instruments and means of a crime, or traces of a crime and objects obtained by criminal means, or who committed other actions aimed at concealing a crime are subject to criminal liability for concealment of a crime not promised in advance. to destroy evidence.

By design, this composition is formal and is considered completed from the moment of commission of any action aimed at concealing a crime. These actions can be either immediate (for example, destruction of a crime weapon) or ongoing (for example, long-term storage of items obtained by criminal means in one’s home).

The disposition of the article in question speaks of concealment that was not promised in advance. The term “in advance” refers to the moment the perpetrator commits the crime. According to paragraph 2 of the Resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the USSR of July 31, 1962 No. 11 “On judicial practice in cases of concealment of crimes not promised in advance, acquisition and sale of knowingly stolen property”, “concealment of a crime ... may be recognized as complicity if these actions were promised to the perpetrator before or during the commission of the crime or for other reasons (for example, due to their systematic commission) gave the perpetrator of the crime grounds to count on such assistance.” It follows from this that concealment promised to the perpetrator before or during the commission of a crime is recognized as complicity (aiding) and responsibility for this act comes under Part 5 of Art. 33 and the corresponding article of the Special Part of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation on the crime committed by the perpetrator. The previous behavior of the concealer will also be recognized as complicity, which gave the perpetrator reason to expect assistance in concealing the crime, despite the fact that concealment was not promised in advance, for example, when the concealer had previously hidden the criminal himself or traces of the crime.

Concealment refers to active actions to conceal a criminal or crime. Concealing a criminal consists, for example, of providing him with a home or other shelter, vehicles, documents, changing his appearance, reporting false information about him, etc. Concealing a crime means placing in a shelter, destroying, altering, selling, donating and other methods of concealing instruments of crime (i.e. items used for the direct commission of a crime - weapons, thieves' tools, etc.), means of crime (i.e. . things that facilitated the actions of the criminal - fake or real uniforms, masks, false documents and means for their production, counterfeit money, etc., traces of the crime (i.e., images resulting from the actions of the criminal that could have been used as material evidence - blood stains, fingerprints, dents from burglary tools, etc.), as well as items obtained by criminal means (i.e. things that were obtained (for example, stolen property, documents) or created illegally (counterfeit money, forged documents)).

The so-called intellectual concealment is most often provided for by independent provisions, for example Art. 306 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation “Knowingly false denunciation”, Art. 307 “Knowingly false testimony, expert opinion or incorrect translation”, etc., but in some cases it can also be qualified under Art. 316 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation For example, if the subject gives deliberately false explanations during the pre-investigation check of materials and statements, or if the subject directs law enforcement officers pursuing the criminal in the other direction. The method of concealment does not affect the presence of the crime in question.

In cases where concealment is expressed in the concealment and storage of items seized or restricted in civil circulation, the act must be qualified under the totality of Art. 316 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and articles providing for liability for storage of these items, for example, Art. 191 “Illegal trafficking in precious metals, natural precious stones or pearls”; Art. 220 “Illegal handling of nuclear materials or radioactive substances”; Art. 222 “Illegal acquisition, transfer, sale, storage, transportation or carrying of weapons, their main parts, ammunition, explosives and explosive devices”; Art. 228 “Illegal acquisition, storage, transportation, production, processing of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances or their analogues, as well as illegal acquisition, storage, transportation of plants containing narcotic drugs or psychotropic substances, or their parts containing narcotic drugs or psychotropic substances”; Art. 234 “Illegal trafficking of potent or toxic substances for sales purposes”, etc.

If the concealment of a crime is committed by criminal means (for example, property is destroyed, harm is caused to health, documents are falsified, etc.), then what was done must also be classified as a set of crimes.

In cases where the method of concealment was murder, the act is fully covered by paragraph “k” of Part 2 of Art. 105 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and additional qualifications under Art. 316 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation is not required.
Special types of concealment are Art. 174 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation “Legalization (laundering) cash or other property acquired by other persons through criminal means” and Art. 175 “Acquisition or sale of property known to have been obtained by criminal means.” In these cases, additional qualifications under Art. 316 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation is also not required.
In all cases, when delimiting the composition, it should be remembered that the onset of criminal liability under Art. 316 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation is based on two criteria: objective - the person has committed active actions to conceal and subjective - the awareness of the perpetrator that he is actually concealing a particularly serious criminal act.
If the person concealing the crime did not know what specific crime he was concealing, liability under Art. 316 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation does not apply.
Likewise, a person who was not reliably aware of the crime committed cannot be held responsible for concealing crimes.

Incitement to concealment of a crime not promised in advance, committed by a person who was subsequently declared insane and exempt from criminal liability, should be qualified under Part 4 of Art. 33 and art. 316 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation

The problem of qualifying the concealment of a particularly serious crime that was not promised in advance, committed out of fear of revenge on the part of the criminal, for example, under the threat of depriving the life of both the concealer himself and his close relatives, deserves special consideration. If at the time of concealment there were all the conditions of extreme necessity provided for in Art. 39 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, then in this case the person should not be held criminally liable for concealment. If the threat of death could be implemented against the concealer only in the future, then qualification under Art. 316 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation

So, K., in the presence of Sh., threatened S. with a knife. Seeing the knife, Sh. got scared and ran away. In his absence, K. killed S., then, threatening Sh., forced him to return, take the money that belonged to S., and wipe off the footprints stained with blood. The Supreme Court of the USSR recognized that Sh. is not liable for either theft of money or concealment, since he was in a state of extreme necessity.

According to paragraph 3 of the Resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the USSR of July 31, 1962 N 11 “On judicial practice in cases of concealment of crimes not promised in advance, acquisition and sale of knowingly stolen property” “concealment of crimes not promised in advance... committed official by using his official position, should be qualified under the articles of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, providing for liability for these crimes, and in the aggregate as abuse of official position” (i.e., under Article 285 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).

Concealment of a particularly serious crime not promised in advance, carried out by a prosecutor, investigator or person conducting an inquiry, through illegal exemption from criminal liability, must be qualified in conjunction with Art. 300 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation

Concealment committed in relation to one’s own criminal actions and the actions of another person does not constitute the crime under consideration. Thus, the court found that V. Roslyakov hit Nikitin on the head at least twice with a baseball bat, causing him moderate harm to his health, while Nikitin was killed by Akhmetov.

Thus, V. Roslyakov, throwing Nikitin’s corpse into the water, covered up not only the crime committed by Akhmetov - murder, but also what he personally committed - causing moderate harm to Nikitin’s health.

The Supreme Court of the Russian Federation has repeatedly explained that the actions of a person to conceal traces of a crime, when these actions are a means of one’s own defense against accusations (including of another crime), do not form a crime under Art. 316 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation Similarly, the concealment by the perpetrator of the instruments and traces of the crime he committed cannot be qualified as concealment of a particularly serious crime not promised in advance, provided for in Art. 316 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, but is a means of one’s own defense against accusations of the crime.

From the subjective side, concealment of crimes is characterized by direct intent. The perpetrator is aware that he is covering up a specific crime and desires it. The person’s consciousness must cover the nature of the actions performed by the perpetrator, as well as the fact that by his actions he contributes to the concealment of the crime.

The motives for the crime are varied: self-interest, fear of the criminal, friendly relations with the perpetrator, etc. They lie outside the scope of the crime and are taken into account by the court when assigning punishment.

The subject of a crime can be any person who has reached the age of 16 years (general subject).

Concealing traces by the perpetrator or participant in the crime does not contain elements of a crime under Art. 316 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (concealment of crimes).
According to the note to Art. 316 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation exempts spouses or close relatives of the person who committed the crime from criminal liability for concealment of particularly serious crimes not promised in advance. The specified rule from May 27, 1993, i.e. since the entry into force of amendments to the Criminal Code of the RSFSR in 1960, it is strictly necessary to judicial practice.

However, in case of special types of concealment, spouses and close relatives are liable on a general basis (for example, clause “k”, part 2 of article 105, art. art. 174, 175, 306, 307 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).
In cases where concealment of a crime is committed by an official using his official position, the act, if there are appropriate signs, can be classified as a set of crimes provided for in Art. 316 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and Art. 285 or art. 286 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation

Video about the station. 316 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation

Due to the fact that the criminal himself or the traces or instruments of his act are hidden. Persons who provide an opportunity for an attacker to escape justice are also breaking the law. However, the Criminal Code provides for only one case in which a person faces punishment for such an act (Article 316). As a result, a large gap appears in the legislation regarding liability for concealing a crime.

Features of the act

Since in practice there are various ways concealment of crimes, and there is only one article in the Criminal Code, a lot of controversial issues arise.

What does Art. 316 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation?

Article 316 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, dedicated to concealing a crime and its traces, consists of one part. The text specifies a list of measures for the concealment of especially serious (!) crimes that were not promised in advance, in other words, unplanned, for which liability is provided for by the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. The note states that the punishment does not apply to close relatives.

Thus, the corpus delicti is quite narrow: the commission of active (both lawyers and courts insist on this definition) actions carried out in order to hide the criminal himself or the means and traces of his crime.

The wording “especially grave” applies to acts for which the accused faces imprisonment for no less than 10 years. Other types of crimes do not fall within the scope of the article.

Article 316 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation does not disclose the concept of concealment of a crime. However, many authors refer to the explanations given in Part 5 of Article 33 of the Criminal Code regarding complicity in the commission of a crime, which talks about a promise to hide the attacker or the tools and traces of his crime, as well as items obtained by criminal means. If we exclude the moment of preliminary agreement (Article 316 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation deals with unplanned concealment of crimes), this interpretation is quite suitable. Actions to conceal a crime during trials are understood similarly.

The subject of the crime and persons who cannot be him

A sane person over 16 years of age may be punished for concealing a crime. However, a serious amendment to this provision is made by the note submitted in the article, according to which close relatives are not condemned for concealment. This comment was made due to the clash between moral and legal norms: on the one hand, a person cannot extradite a loved one, on the other hand, he is obliged to comply with the law.

Close relatives traditionally include parents, children, grandchildren, grandparents, as well as legal spouses. An important point is the fact of registering the marriage in the registry office. If the criminal is sheltered by his cohabitant, the article will be applied, but if the legal wife is not.

Many scientists believe that such a solution does not fully correspond to the realities of modern life. Some lawyers propose to equate cohabitants to legal spouses if they have children together.

The following video will tell you more about ways to hide crimes:

Legal norms

So, as it becomes clear from what was said earlier, there are many omissions in the legal regulation of concealing a crime.

• The first of them is the absence of not only criminal, but also administrative responsibility for concealing serious acts and crimes of moderate gravity. It turns out that there is no prohibition on this type of concealment, which means that you can help a criminal who has committed a misdemeanor or a not particularly serious crime with impunity.
• Many citizens are concerned about the issue of concealment of a crime by investigators, which is also not separately considered anywhere. Acts of this kind are, as a rule, brought under Article 286 - Excess of official authority.
• There is a fine line between complicity and concealment. To distinguish between these crimes, it is necessary to establish the presence/absence of a prior agreement.

One more fact should be taken into account: when classifying a crime under Article 316, only the active actions of the concealer are taken into account (an attempt to hide the criminal, his things, the murder weapon, etc.). Failure to report a criminal act committed by someone does not constitute a crime.

Now let's find out how to draw up a statement about concealing a crime and submit it to the police or prosecutor's office.

Statement on concealing a crime

Like other statements whose purpose is to report a violation of the law, a statement of concealment is submitted to the police or prosecutor's office.

The format of this paper is standard:

• “Caption” in the right corner, including information about the person to whom the application is addressed and about the citizen who submitted it;
• The title of the document is in the middle of the sheet;
• The essence of the appeal;
• Signature and date.

Statements accusing law enforcement officers of concealment are often submitted to the chairman of the investigative commission. Read on to find out what liability and punishment are provided for concealing a crime and assisting in such an act.

Responsibility for concealing a crime

Responsibility for concealing someone else's crime is provided for only in the Criminal Code, and the crime in question must be classified as especially serious. A person who is not a close relative or spouse of a person who has committed a particularly serious crime may face one of the penalties established by Article 316 of the Criminal Code for concealment.

Some people, when committing a crime by others, hide the criminals, but are in no hurry to report to the police. This behavior is dangerous for society, therefore a special article 316 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation is applied for it. It describes the types of criminal penalties that are used to bring to justice those who have harbored criminals. This behavior can even be considered complicity, because the citizen was obliged to report to law enforcement agencies, but did not do this, thereby endangering other citizens.

The article specifies the punishment for concealing crimes. It contains part 1, which describes responsibility for concealing especially serious acts.

Note: a person is exempt from liability for harboring a spouse or close relative.

Presentation and main provisions

The article for concealing crimes states that concealment of crimes is punishable by a fine, arrest, or imprisonment.

In what cases is it applied, types of punishments and terms

For deliberate concealment of a crime of an especially grave nature, the following are imposed:

• a fine of up to 200 thousand rubles or income for 18 months;
• forced labor, imprisonment for 2 years;
• arrest for six months.

Comments on Article 316

Object – relationships associated with solving a crime and exposing the person who is guilty of committing it.

Comments:

• Concealment not promised in advance is similar in external signs with complicity in the form of aiding and abetting, but is distinguished by the absence of interdependence of the intentions of the perpetrator and accomplices of a particularly serious act and the person carrying out the concealment.
• In case of concealment, unlike aiding and abetting, there is no preliminary promise to perform actions that do not affect the formation and implementation of intent to commit a crime.
• The objective side is active actions to conceal the crime, weapons, objects, traces, and the guilty person. This is the destruction of the scene and objects of a crime by arson, flooding, erasing traces, by transporting the criminal in a car, giving advice on hiding, sending authorities on a false trail.
• The crime is over at the moment the action is taken to conceal the crime or the guilty person, regardless of the result.

The law does not determine how long after the offense concealment can be carried out, but in meaning this time is equal to the statute of limitations until the discovery of the act. Concealment ends with the end of active actions without depending on the preservation of the effect of such actions. For example, concealment in the form of committing plastic surgery finished at the end surgical intervention, although the criminal may remain hidden for a long time.

• Subject is a person over 16 years of age. A person whose spouse or close relative committed a crime that concealed him is not subject to liability. This is due to the moral obligation and excusable behavior of a citizen to assist a relative. If concealment is committed by a person using his official position, then the act is additionally qualified under Articles 285 and 286.
• Concealment is associated only with direct intent. The perpetrator understands the danger of the act, his actions, and wants to hide the person, objects or traces of the crime from the police. The motive does not affect qualifications, but must be taken into account when determining punishment. If a person concealed a crime that he himself committed, he is not liable under this article.

An additional object is the activities of authorities to solve crimes and implement criminal liability. The crime may be expressed in intellectual or physical assistance provided that such acts do not themselves constitute a crime. For example, if a person deliberately sent police officers on a false trail, he is punished for concealment. If a person knowingly gives false testimony in order to shield a criminal, this is Article 307.

Concealment is punishable under this article if committed in relation to especially serious crimes. Only actions not promised in advance are persecuted. Its end does not coincide with the moment of completion of the crime from a legal point of view. It actually ends when the activity is stopped and the culprit confesses to it.

In case of abuse of official powers, only Article 285 can be applied in case of concealment of a crime, the concealment of which is not prosecuted by law, or the actions were carried out by the subject. If officials pursue the same goals, then the crime is qualified not as concealment, but as a crime against justice. Concealment is a minor offense. If the act was committed with a preliminary conspiracy, then liability under Article 316 does not arise; the option of complicity is considered.

What does judicial practice show under this article?

When concealing a crime by police officers or other entities, Article 316 is applied, judicial practice on which is not uncommon.

Examples of cases:

1. Citizen U. committed theft. He knew that they would be looking for him, so he left the city and asked his friend for help. He told him about the theft and asked him to hide him until the traces were covered. The friend agreed. G. began to live with him, but he received directions to all the cities, and one day he was detained. The friend also received a summons to court; he should have received punishment for concealment, but since U.’s crime was not serious, he was only given a fine.
2. Citizen D. killed a man and fled the crime scene. To avoid being found, he went to the village to visit his parents and hid in an abandoned house. But it was there that the police first went to find traces of him. D.'s parents were not there, so the police carried out searches all over locality and discovered D. His parents were not tried for concealment, since they were close relatives.
3. Citizen V. was raped by citizen Sh. He was drunk when he did this, so the next morning he was afraid of his actions and decided to hide with a colleague. He knew that he was hiding a criminal, but when they came to arrest him, he began to say that he did not know this. The court was able to prove the colleague’s involvement in concealing Sh., for which he received a fine.

What decisions are most often made under Article 316?

Failure to report a crime or concealment of a crime often results in convictions. In 2017, there were 193 cases under this article, in which 33 people were sent to prison, 31 received suspended sentences, 107 received a fine, 2 each received compulsory labor and compulsory measures for the insane.

What are most often aggravating and mitigating circumstances?

Article 316 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation specifies only mitigating circumstances - harboring a relative or spouse. Also, failure to report minor crimes is not subject to criminal liability. Aggravating circumstances may be selected by the court from those presented in a separate article of the Criminal Code.