Theft and fraud Flashcards
1
Q
Which statute defines theft?
A
Theft Act 1968
2
Q
What is theft, according to the Theft Act 1968
A
A person is guilty of theft if he dishonestly appropriates property belonging to another with the intention of permanently depriving the other of it
3
Q
S3
A
Appropriation
4
Q
s4
A
Of property
5
Q
s5
A
Belonging to another
6
Q
s6
A
Intention to permanently deprive
7
Q
s2
A
Dishonesty
8
Q
What is an appropriation of property?
A
s3: Any assumption by a person of the rights of an owner
9
Q
What is the leading case for appropriation of property?
A
Morris
10
Q
Morris
A
D switched labels at a supermarket to purchase the goods at a lower price. By doing so, D assumed the rights of the owner=appropriation of propert.y
11
Q
Gomez
A
assistant manager of an electrical shop convinced his manager to allow 2 stolen checks.
Notwistanding consent, D held to have appropriated property
12
Q
HInks
A
D befriended V (naive, trusting and of limited intelligence)
D argued that 60k= gift
held- d convicted of theft
13
Q
Where won’t appropriation be found?
A
s3(2) where D believes she purchased the property in good faith, assuming ownership of property.
If it transpires that the full title was not transferred (goods had been stolen) D is excused from conviction of theft
14
Q
What is legally recognised as being property?
A
S4(2) includes money and all other property, real or personal, including things in action and other intangible property.
15
Q
What is real property?
A
Land
16
Q
What is personal property?
A
All other property that is not land- includes illegal / prohibited
17
Q
How is possession defined? S5 1
A
Property shall be regarded as belonging to any person having possession or control of it, or having in it any proprietary right or interest (not being an equitable interest arising only from an agreement to transfer or grant an interest).
18
Q
Rostron
A
D trespassed golf course and had taken lost golf balls- owner had maintained possession and control over them = theft by D
19
Q
Turner (No 2)
A
D had his car repaired at the garage. To avoid payment, D took the car. Guilty of theft
20
Q
Marshall
A
D obtained part used tickes on the underground. London underground claimed ownership of the tickets
21
Q
Gresham
A
Ds mother died. D did not inform power of attorney, who continued making pension payments for ten years. D had a duty under s5(4) to return the money
22
Q
What was the test set out in ivey?
A
Dishonesty is found by looking to D’s knowledge or belief as to the facts and whether D’s conduct was dishonest by the standards of reasonable people
23
Q
What is robbery?
A
S8 TA 1968 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, he uses force on any person or puts or seeks to put any person in fear of being then and there subjected to force.
24
Q
AG’s Reference (No 1 and 2)
A
D still demonstrates an intenttion to steal at the time of appropriation
25
P v DPP
D snatched a lit cigarette from V’s hand. No contact was made with V. D was charged with robbery.
Youth Court: guilty of robbery.
High Court: appeal allowed, and conviction for theft substituted. D’s snatching of the cigarette did not amount to sufficient ‘force’ to satisfy robbery.
26
Hale
D1 and D2 broke into V’s house. Whilst D1 stole V’s jewellery, D2 tied V up. D1 and D2 were charged with robbery.
Crown Court: guilty of robbery.
Court of Appeal: convictions upheld on appeal. Even if the appropriation by D1 might have occurred fractionally before the force used by D2, the act of theft can be interpreted as a continuing act. The elements of robbery therefore coincided in time.
27
What must there be to establish robbery?
Intentional link- D must use force to steal
28
What is burglary?
S9 TA 1968
A person is guilty of burglary if—
(a)
he enters any building or part of a building as a trespasser and with intent to commit any such offence as is mentioned in subsection (2) below; or
(b)
having entered any building or part of a building as a trespasser he steals or attempts to steal anything in the building or that part of it or inflicts or attempts to inflict on any person therein any grievous bodily harm.
29
When is D liable?
At the point of entry, provided he has the requisite intent
30
Ryan
D attempted to break into v's house but became wedged in the kitchen window.
Charged with s9(1)
31
Whats the MR for sec 9 (1)(a)
Intention/reckless to trespass;
Intent to steal, cause, cause GBH or criminal damage
32
Collins
D, naked, climbed the window to v's room
V mistakenly had sex with D
D charged with burglary
33
What is the difference between a sec 9(1)(A) offence and 9(1)(b) offence?
a- intention to steal, cause GBH or criminal damage
b- commits theft, causes GBH or criminal damage
34
Atakpu
Ds hired cars in Belgium and Germany using false passports. Ds drove the cars to England and were arrested on arrival. The Court of Appeal was open to the suggestion that appropriation can continue ‘for as long as the thief can sensibly be regarded as in the act of stealing’, but on the facts the cars were appropriated as soon as they were hired and the process of stealing had come to an end before they reached England.
35
What is a thing in action?
The right to sue
36
Who is a trespasser?
A person who has permission to enter the building, but exceeds that permission, becomes a trespasser:
37
Jones v Smith
The two defendants entered Smith’s father’s house and stole television sets. For the purposes of s 9(1)(b) Theft Act 1968, a person was a trespasser if he entered the premises of another knowing that, or being reckless whether, he was entering in excess of any permission that had been given to him to enter.
38
Attorney-General’s References (Nos 1 and 2 of 1979) [1980] QB 180
D entered a building as a trespasser with intent to steal, but the building was empty. The Court of Appeal held it is not necessary to specify any particular article as being the object of D’s intention, nor is it a defence that D intended to steal only if he found something worth stealing.
39
What is aggravated burglary
S10 TA 1968- burglary+ listed weapon
40
S22 Theft Act 1968
A person handles stolen goods if (otherwise than in the course of the stealing) knowing or believing them to be stolen goods he dishonestly receives the goods, or dishonestly undertakes or assists in their retention, removal, disposal or realisation by or for the benefit of another person, or if he arranges to do so.
41
What is the AT for handling stolen goods?
- D receives the goods and retains, removes, disposes of the goods for the benefit of another
42
Defazio v DPP
V’s missing credit card was found in D’s house. D was charged with handling stolen goods.
Magistrates’ court: guilty of handling stolen goods.
Divisional Court: appeal allowed. The fact that the card was found does not mean that it was stolen; D had claimed that he found the card on the street and merely forgot to hand it in.
43
When can goods cease to be stolen?
s24(3) )
But no goods shall be regarded as having continued to be stolen goods after they have been restored to the person from whom they were stolen or to other lawful possession or custody, or after that person and any other person claiming through him have otherwise ceased as regards those goods to have any right to restitution in respect of the theft.
44
Bloxham
D purchased a car from P, unaware that it was stolen. D later came to suspect that the car was stolen and sold it to X. D was charged with handling stolen goods.
Crown Court: guilty of handling stolen goods.
Court of Appeal: conviction upheld on appeal.
House of Lords: appeal allowed. D clearly disposed of the stolen goods, but did not do so for the benefit of another. Although the buyer of the car (X) may have benefited, it was not sold by D for X’s benefit
45
MR for s22
- Knowledge or belief that the goods were stolen
- Dishonesty (application of ivey/barton)
(i) what was the actual state of D’s knowledge or belief as to the facts? And (ii), in the context of (i), was D’s conduct dishonest by the standards of ordinary decent people?
46
S21 TA 1968
If, with a view to make a gain for himself or intent to cause a loss to another, he makes an unwarranted demand with menaces: for this purporse a demand with menaces is unwarranted unless the person making it believes:
- That he has reasonable grounds for making the demand
- The use of the menaces is the proper means of reinforcing the demand
47
AR of s21
D makes a demand to anothers property
The use of menaces
48
What is a menace
‘any action detrimental to or unpleasant to the person addressed of such a nature and extent that the mind of an ordinary person of normal stability and courage might be influenced or made apprehensive so as to accede unwillingly to the demand
49
Leading case for blackmail
Lambert
50
What must the prosecution prove for D to have blackmailed V
(i) D did not believe that she had reasonable grounds to make the demands, or (ii) that D did not believe that the use of menaces was a proper means of reinforcing the demand.
51
What is criminal damage?
Where A person who without lawful excuse destroys or damages any property belonging to another intending to destroy or damage any such property or being reckless as to whether any such property would be destroyed or damaged shall be guilty of an offence.
52
Which statute provides liability for criminal damage
S1(1) Criminal damage act 1971
53
AR for s 1 CDA
damage to property belonging to another
54
Hardman v Chief Constable of Avon and Somerset Constabulary
D painted silhouettes on the pavement using water-soluble paints. The paint would have washed away in a few days, but the council paid for a jet wash to remove it. The issue was whether the painting constituted damage.
Crown Court: taking account of the cost of removal, the painting constituted criminal damage.
55
To whom must property belong to in order to establish criminal damage liability
Having custody/control, proprietary interest, having a charge (10)(2)(a)
56
MR for s 1 CDA 1971
Recklessness to cause damage
Intended / known it to be reckless
57
Smith
At the end of D’s tenancy, he removed a length of wiring that he had installed, causing £130 worth of damage. Under civil law, following its installation, the wiring belonged to D’s landlord. However, D was unaware of this, believing that it belonged to him. D was charged with criminal damage.
Crown Court: guilty of criminal damage.
Court of Appeal: appeal allowed. D did not know, and did not foresee a risk, that the wiring did not belong to him. D lacked an essential element of the mens rea.
58
Defences to criminal damage
s(5)(2)(a) belief in consent - Jaggard v Dickinson
s5(2)(b) belief in the protection of property
59
What are the elements when relying on s5(2)(b)
belief in vested interest- D must believe that she or another has a vested interest in property that she is acting to protect by damaging other property
belief in immediate need
belief in reasonableness of methods
60
Hunt
D, who was assisting his wife as a warden at a set of retirement flats, set fire to some bedding to draw attention to the defective fire alarms. D claimed a section 5(2)(b) defence, saying that he was acting to protect the properties from future risks. D was charged with arson which requires proof of criminal damage.
Crown Court: guilty of arson.
Court of Appeal: conviction upheld on appeal. Whether D’s acts were capable of protecting the property (were ‘in order to’) is an objective question. Here, D’s acts provided no protection.
61
What is arson
An offence under s1(3) CDA 1971 by destroying or damaging property by fire (criminal damage + by fire = arson)
62
What is aggravated criminal damage?
S1(2) CDA 1971- A person who without lawful excuse destroys or damages property intending to destroy or damage property or being reckless as to whether any property would be destroyed.
Intending the destruction or damage to endanger the life of another (foreseeability)
63
Steer
D shot a rifle at the windows of V’s house, against whom he had a grudge, breaking the windows (criminal damage) and foreseeing the endangerment of V. D was charged with aggravated criminal damage.
Crown Court: guilty of aggravated criminal damage.
Court of Appeal: appeal allowed. D was reckless as to the endangerment of V from his acts (ie shooting the rifle), he was not reckless as to the endangerment of V ‘by the destruction or damage of property’ (ie from the broken glass from the window). Aggravated criminal damage is only satisfied by the latter.
House of Lords: appeal dismissed, confirming the reasoning of the Court of Appeal.
64
S2 of the Fraud Act 2006
Fraud by false representation
A person is in breach of this section if he—
(a) dishonestly makes a false representation, and
(b) intends, by making the representation—
(i) to make a gain for himself or another, or
(ii) to cause loss to another or to expose another to a risk of loss.
(4)A representation may be express or implied.
65
When is a representation false?
(2) A representation is false if—
(a) it is untrue or misleading, and
(b) the person making it knows that it is, or might be, untrue or misleading.
66
What is a representation?
(3)“Representation” means any representation as to fact or law, including a representation as to the state of mind of—
(a)the person making the representation, or
(b)any other person.
67
Does the representation have to be directed to a person?
(5)For the purposes of this section a representation may be regarded as made if it (or anything implying it) is submitted in any form to any system or device designed to receive, convey or respond to communications (with or without human intervention).
68
Idrees v DPP
False rep to pass his driving test
69
What is the MR for a s2 FA 2006
D must foresee a risk that her representation is false, act dishonestly and intend to make a gain or cause loss to another
70
S3 Fraud Act 2006
Fraud by failure to disclose information
71
When will a person be culpable for s3 FA
Dishonestly fails to disclose info he is under a legal duty to disclose, intends to make a gain for himself/another or cause a loss or expose another to the risk of loss
72
Mashta
D continued to receive asylum support on grounds of destitution whilst in gainful employment. Among other charges, D was charged with fraud by failing to disclose his employment.
Crown Court: guilty of fraud.
Court of Appeal: appeal on sentence allowed, but conviction upheld.
73
S4 FA
Fraud by abuse of position
74
When does D commit fraud by abuse of position?
D occupies a position in which he is expected to safeguard the financial interests of another person
Dishonestly abuses that position
Intends by means of that abuse to make a gain or cause a loss
75
Marshall
Manager of residential care home withdrew over 7k of a residents bank for her own benefit. Guilty of fraud
76
S11 FA
Fraud by obtaining services dishonestly
77
S6 FA
Possession of articles for use in fraud
78
S7 FA
Making supplying, adapting, offering any article knowing/intending for it to be used in connection with fraud
79
