Yaroslav Nilov, chairman of the State Duma Committee on Labor, Social Policy and Veterans Affairs, plans to equalize sanctions for theft and theft of a car, as he announced on his Telegram channel.
“We in the Duma have repeatedly insisted that theft and theft of a vehicle should be legally equated in terms of sanctions, but they did not support us then. We intend to come back to this issue and make the necessary changes to the Criminal Code, which will tighten the liability for theft,” said Nilov.
Currently, the number of car thefts has increased by a third compared to last year. This is due to the shortage of cars, as well as the lack of spare parts and components.
The hijackers, if caught, declare that they took the car for a ride, and this is Article 166 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (illegal possession of a car or other vehicle without the purpose of theft). The penalty under it is not as severe as under Article 158 (theft). Proving it was theft is nearly impossible.
“Under certain conditions, it is possible to avoid heavy responsibility relatively painlessly, by getting rid of it with little blood in the form of a fairly insignificant fine. This is unacceptable,” says Yaroslav Nilov.