What are constituent elements of the crime of consuming property acquired through another's criminal act in Vietnam? What are judgments related to this offense?

1. What are constituent elements of the crime of consuming property acquired through another's criminal act in Vietnam?

According to Clause 1, Article 1 of Interministerial Circular 09/2011/TTLT-BCA-BQP-BTP-NHNNVN-VKSNDTC-TANDTC, "property acquired through another person’s criminal act" refers to assets directly obtained by the offender through committing a criminal act (e.g., seized assets, embezzled money, bribery...) or obtained by the offender through purchasing or exchanging for assets directly acquired from their criminal act (e.g., a motorcycle bought using embezzled funds).

The constitutive elements of the crime of consuming property acquired through another person’s criminal act are as follows:

* Subjective Aspect

The subject of this crime is any person with criminal responsibility capability as stipulated by the Criminal Code 2015 (amended 2017).

* Objective Aspect

The act of harboring or consuming property acquired through another person’s criminal act infringes on social order and safety and indirectly infringes on the property ownership rights of others.

- Objective Behavior

+ The basis for determining the offender of harboring or consuming property acquired through another person’s criminal act does not rely on the value of the property they harbor or consume.

If a person possesses the property not as a result of another person's crime, or if the actions of the person who owns the property lack one of the elements constituting a crime, it cannot be considered property acquired through a crime.

+ The crime of harboring or consuming property acquired through another person’s criminal act is divided into two actions:

(i) The act of harboring property acquired through another person’s criminal act: This involves an individual knowingly holding, keeping, or concealing property known to be acquired from someone else's crime.

(ii) The act of consuming property acquired through another person’s criminal act: This involves an individual knowingly purchasing the property to use or for other purposes to sell the property for the offender.

Therefore, depending on the criminal act, the individual being prosecuted may face different charges under Article 323 of the Criminal Code 2015 (amended 2017).

- The criminal act must meet the following conditions:

(i) There was no prior promise to the person transferring the property that it would be harbored or consumed;

(ii) Upon receiving or consuming the property, it then becomes known to be acquired from a crime committed by the person transferring the property.

- Consequence of the criminal act: Infringement on the property ownership rights of the victim, causing difficulties for investigation, handling, and prosecution operations.

* Subjective Aspect

- Element of Fault: It is direct intentional fault, meaning the offender is aware that the property they harbor or consume is acquired through another person’s crime.

- Purpose is not a mandatory element when determining whether this crime was committed.

2. Some judgments regarding the crime of consuming property acquired through another person’s criminal act

Below are some judgments regarding the crime of consuming property acquired through another person’s criminal act:

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