Criminal Responsibility for Pipeline Thefts: Legislative, Theoretical and Practical Aspects

The paper is devoted to the problems arising in the theory of criminal law and court and investigative practice when classifying a theft under paragraph «b« of Part 3 of Article 158 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. According to the results of the study, the authors present their recommendations as to improvement of the classification of a theft committed from other pipelines (not normatively fixed in Article 158 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). The physical essence of the object of theft and its different interpretation in the legal literature are analyzed. The paper considers mandatory elements of a theft in the form of stealing and using hydrocarbons in their favor, committed by the so-called illegal tapping. Special attention is given to the issues of differentiation of planning and attempt in the analyzed body of theft, assessment of the actions of the coauthor and accomplice in the theft from the oil pipeline, oil product pipeline and gas pipeline. The category of «place» of a criminal act, i.e., theft from pipelines of various types, including trunk pipelines, is systematized, and the classification of the deed is proposed. The author’s position on the classification of other forms of theft (in particular, robbery and plundering) committed from an oil pipeline, oil product pipeline or gas pipeline is highlighted. The law enforcement practice is analyzed, the issues of distinguishing the theft of oil, petroleum products or gas from the pipeline from causing property damage by deception or abuse of trust are touched upon. The authors conclude that theft of oil (petroleum products) and theft of gas represent two types of theft within the same body of the crime. The authors have studied over 400 court decisions (sentences, rulings, resolutions) on crimes in the form of theft of oil, petroleum products or gas from pipelines for the period from 2007 to 2022, in more than 20 regions of Russia. The results of the study are reflected in the presented conclusions.

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