Forgery is traditionally understood as the process of fitting, creating or simulating objects, documents or statistics, the main purpose of which is to mislead people. In domestic criminal law, liability for such activities is regulated by Art. 292 of the Criminal Code.
Historical reference
Any crime and the norm, assuming responsibility for it, has its own history of formation. The fight against such an act as forgery began long before the time of the emergence of many modern states.
In Roman law, this concept was interpreted very extensively. Forgery, in particular, included forgery of wills, measures, coins, weights, seals, bribery of judges, perjury. It was a collective concept and, from a legal point of view, unsuitable for anything, covering all possible cases concerning the concealment of truth.
English criminal law defined the forgery in the 1981 Act as “creating a false tool to push someone to take it for the original and thus harm yourself or a third party.
In domestic law, the concept appeared even at the time of the creation of the “Russian Truth” and various metamorphoses passed. The wording of the Soviet era is closest to the content of the current criminal law on forgery (Article 292 of the Criminal Code). Then this act was defined as forgery of genuine documents or the preparation of false ones. At the same time, the forgery was divided into official and simple, that is, committed by a private person.
Art. 292 of the Criminal Code: simple composition
Modern Russian legislation defines forgery as the introduction by a state or municipal employee, as well as an official, of knowingly false information into official documents, as well as corrections in them that distort the content. Criminal liability is provided if these acts were committed in personal interests or with a mercenary purpose.
A simple composition involves one of the alternative punishments for the guilty person in the form of:
- a fine in the amount of 80 thousand rubles. or any other guilty income (including salary) for the period up to six months;
- compulsory work lasting up to 480 hours;
- correctional or forced labor for up to 2 years;
- arrest for up to six months;
- deprivation of liberty for up to 2 years.
Qualified staff
Qualifying attribute under Art. 292 of the Criminal Code is a forgery that entails a significant violation of the legitimate interests of organizations, citizens, as well as their rights or the interests of the state or society as a whole, protected by law.
In this case, the following types of sanctions are applied (alternatively):
- fine in the amount of 100-500 thousand rubles. or any other guilty income (including salary) for the period from 1 year to 3 years;
- forced labor for up to 4 years with an additional ban on engaging in certain activities or restricting the right to hold specific positions for a period of up to 3 years (or without one);
- imprisonment of a person for a term of up to 4 years with an additional ban on engaging in certain activities or restriction of the right to hold specific posts for a period of up to 3 years (or without it).
Object and subject of crime
The object of a criminal assault, according to art. 292 of the Criminal Code, is the normal activity of state bodies, which is associated with the release of official documents and their circulation.
Based on the foregoing, it is easy to guess which thing in the material world is affected during the commission of a crime. In other words, what is his subject. These are documents, but not all, but that meet certain requirements: they come from a certain legal entity, and not necessarily from a government agency, contain all official features, that is, are recognized by law. A detailed explanation is given in the comments to Art. 292 of the Criminal Code.
An official document should have all the signs of publicity. They are expressed in the generally accepted form, its addressing to an indefinite number of persons (subjects of legal relations), fixation on a material medium (electronic, paper, magnetic, etc.). The acquisition of an official document takes place after it is signed by an official who has the right to sign.
Objective side
The official forgery (Article 292 of the Criminal Code) from the objective side is characterized by a formal composition. The crime is considered completed at the time of entering false, inaccurate information into the official document. The act itself is expressed in falsification or falsification, committed in various ways (erasure, correction, addition, etc.). This also includes the addition of knowingly false information. But the use of such a document, as well as the consequences resulting from this, are beyond the scope of the offense (according to Article 292 of the Criminal Code). These actions are not included in the subject of proof. All further criminal acts that are in any way connected with the use of a forged document and the consequences resulting from this, are qualified according to another criminal law norm.
Subject and subjective side
The subject of official forgery is defined as special. It is a person who is in the public service, either an official or an employee of local self-government bodies.
The law characterizes the subjective side of the forgery as guilt in the form of direct intent. The offender is aware of the unlawful nature of his actions and wishes to commit them. It is important to remember that the guilty person’s mental attitude to forgery should always be associated with selfish intent and other personal interests.
Comments on Art. 292 of the Criminal Code
As mentioned above, the subject of forgery is official documents. Comments on this include the following information.
An official document is a written act executed on electronic or paper media and emanating from one or another link of the state apparatus. It must certify specific events and facts that entail certain legal consequences for the persons using it. The official document must contain the necessary details: stamp, seal, date, number, signature of the official. These include, for example, the following: registry books of the registry office, work book, identification card, etc.
Speaking about the mercenary intent of the offender, the legislator refers to the person’s desire to derive any benefit (illegal) for himself. It can be either tangible, expressed in the acquisition of a right to property, or intangible - gaining the right to dispose of any intellectual property.
The wording of the legislator “other personal interest” is interpreted quite broadly: exorbitant vanity, protectionism, careerism, concealment of negative results of their labor activity, etc.
Forgery and falsification: the difference
Crime qualified under Art. 292 of the Criminal Code, has a composition similar to some other criminal offenses. First of all, forgery should be separated from the falsification of evidence. And in that and in another case, at first glance, changes are made to the documents. However, with falsification, it is precisely the distortion that is carried out that is known to be observed, and not fake. In other words, the content of the document changes in the manner in which it is required by the falsifier. In addition, in the future, the subject should be used as evidence (Article 303 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).