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Possession of stolen goods is a crime in which an individual has bought, been given, or acquired stolen goods. In many jurisdictions, if an individual has accepted possession of goods (or property) and knew they were stolen, then the individual may be charged with a crime, depending on the value of the stolen goods, and the goods are returned to the original owner. If the individual did not know the goods were stolen, then the goods are returned to the owner and the individual is not prosecuted. However, it can be difficult to prove or disprove a suspect's knowledge that the goods were stolen.


Nature of offence by country


Canada

The
Criminal Code A criminal code (or penal code) is a document that compiles all, or a significant amount of a particular jurisdiction's criminal law. Typically a criminal code will contain offences that are recognised in the jurisdiction, penalties that might ...
specifies three offences: :* Possession of property obtained by crime (s. 354) :* Trafficking in property obtained by crime (ss. 355.2)''Criminal Code'', ss. 355.1–355.4
:* Possession of property obtained by crime for the purposes of trafficking (ss. 355.4) The basic definition for the possession offence (which is almost identical in wording for the trafficking offences) is as follows: If the value of the property is greater than $5,000, the maximum punishment on indictment is 10 years for possession only, and 14 years if related to trafficking. Otherwise, the maximum on indictment is two years and five years respectively, or alternatively punishment by summary conviction. (ss. 355 and 355.5)


United Kingdom

Handling stolen goods is the name of a statutory offence in
England and Wales England and Wales () is one of the three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the constituent countries England and Wales and was formed by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. The substantive law of the jurisdiction is Eng ...
and
Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
. It takes place after a theft or other dishonest acquisition is completed and may be committed by a
fence A fence is a structure that encloses an area, typically outdoors, and is usually constructed from posts that are connected by boards, wire, rails or netting. A fence differs from a wall in not having a solid foundation along its whole length. ...
or other person who helps the thief to realise the value of the stolen goods. (This replaces the offence of "receiving stolen goods" under section 33 of the
Larceny Act 1916 The Larceny Act 1916 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Its purpose was to consolidate and simplify the law relating to larceny triable on indictment and to kindred offences. The definition of larceny for the purposes of the Ac ...
.)


England and Wales

This offence is created by section 22(1) of the
Theft Act 1968 The Theft Act 1968c 60 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It creates a number of offences against property in England and Wales. On 15 January 2007 the Fraud Act 2006 came into force, redefining most of the offences of decepti ...
, which provides: Stolen goods: This term means property stolen anywhere, as long as the theft amounted to an offence where committed. It includes any proceeds of that property, including money for which it has been sold, and anything bought with those proceeds. However, property which has been returned to the original owner, or otherwise lawful custody, is no longer regarded as stolen, by section 24(3). This may create difficulties, It is not necessary that the property be "stolen" in a limited sense; section 24(4) of the Act specifically extends the scope to property obtained by fraud or blackmail. However, it is also implicit in the definition of offences such as burglary or robbery that handling may apply to the proceeds of these offences. Dealing: The offence of handling is drafted widely enough to criminalise any dishonest dealing with property that has been come by dishonestly; for example, the original thief may also be convicted of a subsequent handling if the thief later arranges its sale. A codification of the methods of dealing has been suggested as #receiving stolen goods, #arranging to receive them, #undertaking the keeping, removing, disposing of, or realisation of stolen goods by or for the benefit of another person, or helping with any of those things, or #arranging to do any of the things in (3). This makes the actus reus of handling very wide; for example, in ''R v Kanwar'', a man had brought stolen goods into the marital home, and his wife, the defendant, had lied to the police; it was held that this constituted "assisting in the retention" of those goods. Knowledge or belief: The accused's knowledge or belief as to the nature of the goods is crucial, but has been a constant source of interpretive problems. Either may be based on what the thief says or some other positive information, but belief is less than knowledge and more than mere suspicion. In ''R v Hall''
985 Year 985 ( CMLXXXV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Summer – Henry II (the Wrangler) is restored as duke of Bavaria by Empress Theoph ...
81 Cr App R 260, it was held that, per Boreham, J., He went on to distinguish the case where a defendant has said The situation is further complicated by the concept of recklessness or wilful blindness to the circumstances; either will be treated as a belief that the goods are stolen. Thus, ''suspicion'' will be converted into belief when the facts are so obvious that belief may safely be imputed. So if the defendant bought goods in a pub or a dark alley for a fraction of their true value and it is clear that identification marks or serial numbers have been erased, denial of belief by the defendant would not be credible. Dishonestly: The '' mens rea'' of the offence is the same as for theft (see '' Ivey v Genting Casinos'' 017UKSC 67). There was at one time in that defendants may be dishonest and intend to handle goods (which they believe to be stolen) but which are not in fact stolen. The
House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminste ...
ruled in '' Haughton v. Smith'' (1973) that where goods previously stolen have been reduced into lawful possession, not only can they not be "handled", but there can be no attempt to handle them. However, since then, section 1 of the Criminal Attempts Act 1981 confirms that such a defendant can be convicted. Laundering is an offence under ss. 327/9 and 340(3)(b) Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 and the distinction between this and handling depends on whether the defendant's intention was to launder the proceeds of crime or merely to assist a thief. Laundering covers large amounts of money in a series of transactions over time when the defendant knows or suspects that the assets which he has concealed, acquired, used, possessed, or in respect of which they have entered into an arrangement which they know or suspect facilitates the acquisition, retention, use, or control of criminal property by or on behalf of another person, are the proceeds of criminal conduct (compare money laundering). Section 23 of the 1968 Act creates an offence of "advertising rewards for the return of stolen goods". This prohibits public advertising for the return of such goods that state that "no questions will be asked", or that offer immunity from prosecution to the returner, or that state that monies paid for the goods will be reimbursed. This is a summary offence but is rarely prosecuted. Handling stolen goods is triable
either way A hybrid offence, dual offence, Crown option offence, dual procedure offence, offence triable either way, or wobbler is one of the special class offences in the common law jurisdictions where the case may be prosecuted either summarily or as i ...
. A person guilty of handling stolen goods is liable, on
conviction In law, a conviction is the verdict reached by a court of law finding a defendant guilty of a crime. The opposite of a conviction is an acquittal (that is, "not guilty"). In Scotland, there can also be a verdict of " not proven", which is cons ...
on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding fourteen years, or on summary conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or to a fine not exceeding the
prescribed sum The prescribed sum is the maximum fine that may be imposed on summary conviction of certain offences in the United Kingdom. In England and Wales and Northern Ireland, it is now equivalent to level 5 on the standard scale, which it predates. In Scot ...
, or to both. The wording of Section 22 actually creates eighteen ways in which "handling" may be committed, This may create a problem for prosecutors in that Rule 7 of the Criminal Procedure Rules 2005, and Rule 7 of the Indictments Rules 1971, provide that only a single offence may be charged in one information (in the Magistrates' Court) or in one count of an indictment (in the Crown Court). It can also be difficult to determine the meaning of "otherwise than in the course of stealing"; it was decided in ''R v Hale'' that the "appropriation" in theft may be a continuing act, so it may be difficult to determine whether a theft has been completed. Apart from the apparent difficulties of specifying a charge that does not offend against the rule against duplicity, it has been said that "in practice almost anything a person does with stolen goods may be classified as a handling". Section 27(3) of the Theft Act 1968 introduces a rare exception to the rule against admissibility of previous criminal conduct in the case of this offence. Evidence may be adduced (but only if handling is the only charge faced by the defendant) that the defendant (a) has been involved in similar conduct within the previous twelve months, and (b) has a previous conviction for handling within five years. This is to counter repeated defences of "innocent dealing" as may be put forward by dishonest pawnbrokers. If the defendant is facing other charges, evidence of previous bad character may be admissible under Section 98 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003.


Northern Ireland

This offence is created b
section 21(1)
of the
Theft Act (Northern Ireland) 1969 The Theft Act (Northern Ireland) 1969 (c 16) is an Act of the Parliament of Northern Ireland. It makes criminal law provisions for Northern Ireland similar to those made in England and Wales by the Theft Act 1968. Section 1 - Theft This section ...
.


Scotland

In
Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
, this crime is called reset. It includes property that was taken by
theft Theft is the act of taking another person's property or services without that person's permission or consent with the intent to deprive the rightful owner of it. The word ''theft'' is also used as a synonym or informal shorthand term for som ...
or robbery as well as property taken by breaches of trust including embezzlement, fraud, and willful imposition.Lying to the police about the location of known stolen goods has been sufficient to be prosecuted for reset, as it aids the criminal in retaining the goods.


Republic of Ireland

The offence of handling stolen property is created b
section 17(1)
of the
Criminal Justice (Theft and Fraud Offences) Act 2001 The Criminal Justice (Theft and Fraud Offences) Act, 2001 (No. 50 of 2001) updates and consolidates the law relating to dishonesty and fraud in the Republic of Ireland. The main sections of the statute include: *Theft and Related Offences *Makin ...
.


United States

In the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
, receipt of stolen property is a federal crime under , and is defined as knowingly receiving, concealing, or disposing of stolen property with a value of at least $5,000 such that it also constitutes
interstate commerce The Commerce Clause describes an enumerated power listed in the United States Constitution ( Article I, Section 8, Clause 3). The clause states that the United States Congress shall have power "to regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and amo ...
(i.e., has been transported across state lines). A person can be found guilty of that offense only if all of the following facts are proven: * The person received or concealed or stored or disposed of items of stolen property. * The items were moving as, or constituted a part of, interstate commerce. * The items had a value in excess of $5,000. * The person acted knowingly and willfully. The
government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is ...
must prove
beyond a reasonable doubt Beyond a reasonable doubt is a legal standard of proof required to validate a criminal conviction in most adversarial legal systems. It is a higher standard of proof than the balance of probabilities standard commonly used in civil cases, beca ...
that the person either received, concealed, stored, sold, or disposed of the stolen property. To be guilty of the offense, a person must know that the property had been stolen, but he need not know that it was moving as, or constituted a part of, interstate commerce. The term "interstate commerce" merely refers to the movement of property from one
U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...
into another; and it is sufficient if the property has recently moved interstate as a result of a transaction or a series of related transactions that have not been fully completed or consummated at the time of the person's acts as alleged. All U.S. states also have laws regarding receipt of stolen property. There is no minimum dollar amount in many jurisdictions, and in the case of state laws the requirement from Federal law regarding interstate commerce does not apply. In many states (
Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...
, for example), the burden to prove criminal intent is not as stringent or is nonexistent. This means that one can be charged with the crime—usually a minor degree of
felony A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "félonie") to describe an offense that resu ...
—even if one did not know the item in question was stolen. In the Ohio case of ''State v. Awad'', the goods did not need to actually be stolen, just represented as such. Receiving stolen property and possession of stolen property are treated as separate offenses in some jurisdictions. What distinguishes the offenses is when the person became aware that the property was stolen. If the person knew that the property was stolen at the time he received it, the crime is receiving stolen property. If the person did not know the property was stolen at the time she received it but found out after receiving possession, the crime is possession of stolen property. The state must prove that the defendant received or possessed the property for a dishonest purpose. If, for example, the person acquired possession for the purpose of returning the property to its lawful owner, no crime has been committed.


See also

*
Fence (criminal) A fence, also known as a receiver, mover, or moving man, is an individual who knowingly buys stolen goods in order to later resell them for profit. The fence acts as a middleman between thieves and the eventual buyers of stolen goods who may n ...
* Handling salmon in suspicious circumstances * Sting operation


References

{{Authority control Theft Crimes Property crimes Recel Ricettazione