Theft

Legal definiton 

Section 205 of the Criminal Code:

(1) Whoever appropriates another's property by taking possession of it and

a) causes non-insignificant damage to another's property,

b) commits the act by breaking and entering,

c) immediately after the act attempts to retain the item through violence or the threat of imminent violence,

d) commits the act on an item that another person has on their person or with them,

e) commits the act in an area where an evacuation of persons is being or has been conducted,

shall be punished by imprisonment of up to two years, a disqqualification, or the forfeiture of the item.

(2) Whoever appropriates another's property by taking possession of it and has been convicted or punished for such an act within the last three years shall be punished by imprisonment for six months to three years.

(3) Imprisonment for one to five years or a financial penalty shall be imposed on the perpetrator if they cause greater damage by the act mentioned in paragraphs 1 or 2.

(4) Imprisonment for two to eight years shall be imposed on the perpetrator if

a) they commit the act mentioned in paragraphs 1 or 2 as a member of an organized group,

b) they commit such an act during a state of emergency, war, natural disaster, or other event seriously endangering the lives or health of people, public order, or property, or

c) they cause significant damage by such an act.

(5) Imprisonment for five to ten years shall be imposed on the perpetrator if

a) they cause large-scale damage by the act mentioned in paragraphs 1 or 2, or

b) they commit such an act with the intent to enable or facilitate the commission of a terrorist criminal offence, the criminal offence of financing terrorism (Section 312d), or the threat of a terrorist criminal offence (Section 312f).

(6) Preparation is criminal.

Subjective aspect - intent

Theft is an intentional criminal offence. A criminal offence is committed intentionally if the perpetrator wanted to violate or endanger a legally protected interest in the manner specified by the Criminal Code (direct intent), or if the perpetrator knew that his actions could result in such a violation or endangerment and accepted the possibility of it occurring (indirect intent).

If the act can be deemed as mere negligence rather than intent, it does not constitute the described criminal offence. 

Defense

There are various defense strategies available. Given the elements of this criminal offence, the following questions may be relevant:

• Did the perpetrator consider the item to be someone else's property?
• Did they intend to take possession of the item, or merely borrow it?
  
• Does the value of the stolen item reach the minimum threshold (10,000 CZK)? Or is another element of § 205(1) of the Criminal Code satisfied?
  
• Was the perpetrator's intent directed towards the decisive facts?