Robbery and Blackmail Flashcards
Robbery and blackmail are two separate offences under the Theft Act 1968, but there are some similarities. Explain.
Robbery if theft involving the use of physical force (or the threat of physical force) to appropriate property.
For blackmail, pressure is also put on the victim with the aim of causing him/her a loss.
However, for blackmail no property needs to have been taken and no physical force needs to be involved for tee offence to be proved.
What is robbery?
The act of stealing from a person whilst using (or threatening the use of) force or violence (s 8 of the Theft Act 1968).
It is an aggravated form of the primary offence of theft and therefore, for robbery to be proved, theft has to be proved first.
Force or threat of force must be used immediately before, at the time of the theft, and in order to carry out the theft.
Section 8(1) of the 1968 Act defines robbery as follows:
A person is guilty of robbery if he steals, and immediately before or at the time of doing so, and…
- Force must be used immediately before or at time of theft.
…in order to do so…
- The force must be used in order to steal.
…he uses force on any person or…
- Victim must be ware of it e.g if go to a bank and tell cashier that “i’ll kill the woman over there” won’t count as robbery as she’ll be unaware.
…puts or seeks to put any person in fear…
…of being then and there subjected to force.
- With the intention that something should happen immediately e.g won’t count if you go “i’ll stab you after work if you don’t hand me the money”
There are two main ways the ‘puts in fear’ element of the offence could be established:
- The victim’s statement could should that he/she was put in fear; the degree of fear is not important (everyone’s different).
- The state of mind of the suspect (intending to make a person fear that force will be used) could be evidenced from the suspect’s statement, evidence from other witnesses or circumstantial evidence, such as them holding an offensive weapon.
The offence of blackmail is committed when….
(Section 21(1) of the 1968 Act)
When a person with a view to gain for themselves or another or intending to cause loss to another makes an unwarranted demand with menaces.
Demand: can be made orally or in writing
With a view to gain or loss: must be FINANCIAL
Menaces: threatening quality to words
The demand must be unwarranted: the court must decide whether the demand was unreasonable, and whether the suspect believes it was reasonable and proper.
Where is covered under?
Section 8 of the Theft Act 1968.
The offence of blackmail is triable…
On indictment only and the maximum penalty is 14 years imprisonment.
Difference between burglary and robbery?
The key difference with Burglary is that only people can be robbed, and there is no requirement for someone to be trespassing. There must be a theft for a Robbery offence to have been committed. If there is no theft, as per the definition you learnt earlier, then there is no Robbery.
In summary, a person is guilty of Robbery if he steals and:
immediately before, or at the time of doing so and in order to do so uses force on any person, or puts, or seeks to put any person in fear of being then and there subjected to force
The key point for Robbery is that the use of force or the threat of force must be made in order to carry out the theft.
If a shoplifter steals a packet of meat, runs away from the shop and then attacks a security guard chasing him, you have separate offences of…
Theft and Assault i.e. the force was not used in order to carry out the theft (it was used to escape), nor was force used at the time or immediately before the theft.
Now, consider the elements of the offence in order to understand why this is not a Robbery:
- The theft is complete - the female has dishonestly appropriated goods (property) belonging to the supermarket, intending to permanently deprive them of the goods. So far, so good.
- The female uses force on the security guard, hitting him and throwing food at him.
- However, she does not do so in order to carry out the theft. She also only uses force and threats of violence on the security guard after the theft has taken place.
FISHER was walking past a supermarket when he sees an old lady coming out. FISHER bumps into the lady and pickpockets her purse, intending to steal it. The woman realises what has happened and shouts for help. FISHER then punches her in the face and knocks her to the ground. As he runs off, he drops the purse on the floor. At what point, if any, does FISHER commit the offence of Robbery?
When he bumps into her and steals the purse
BAINES is on a night out with friends. He gets into an argument with TURNER which results in them fighting. TURNER knocks BAINES out and walks off, leaving him lying on the pavement. While BAINES is out cold, HARRINGTON comes along and spots him on the floor. Seeing an opportunity, HARRINGTON takes BAINES’ wallet from his trousers and runs off with it. BAINES comes around later and realises his property has been stolen and reports it to police. Has a robbery been committed in these circumstances?
No, because force was not used to steal the wallet
SERBAN goes into a bank armed with a sawn-off shotgun. He approaches the counter and asks that the cashier puts all the money into a bag, which he passes her. The cashier refuses, so SERBAN grabs a nearby customer and puts the shotgun to her head. He then demands that the cashier puts all the money into the bag again, which she now does, fearing that he will kill the customer. Once SERBAN has got the money, he escapes from the bank into a nearby car and drives off. At what point, if any, does SERBAN commit the offence of Robbery?
SERBAN commits robbery when he receives the money from the cashier
ALI spots a male with his wallet poking out of his jacket pocket in a crowd. ALI approaches the male and stealthily plucks the wallet out of his pocket, hiding it in his own jacket. The male suddenly turns around, realising that his wallet is missing and shouts at ALI, demanding his wallet back. ALI panics and punches the male in the face before running off. Has ALI committed the offence of robbery?
No, as the force used must be before or at the time of committing the theft
