Crime Of Damage To Property And Its Elements
What is Damage to Property? (TCK m.151-152)
The destruction, demolition, elimination, or contamination of any property belonging to another person is referred to as damage to property. The crime of damaging property was established to protect the property rights of others and to punish the aforementioned unlawful acts against the property of others. The crime of damaging property is regulated in TCK Articles 151-152.
Complaint, Statute of Limitations, and Mediation Concepts in the Crime of Damage to Property
The simple form of the crime, in other words, the form that carries the least punishment, is subject to complaint. In other words, the victim of the crime must exercise their right to complain within six months of learning of the perpetrator and the act.
The aggravated forms of the crime are those that require a more severe punishment. Therefore, the aggravated forms of the crime in question are not subject to complaint. In other words, even if the victim does not file a complaint against the perpetrator, the prosecution may investigate the crime on its own initiative within the eight-year statute of limitations.
For the crime of simple damage to property, a conciliation procedure is first applied between the parties. In other words, the crime in question is subject to conciliation. In crimes subject to conciliation, both during the investigation and prosecution stages, the conciliation procedure must first be applied, and if conciliation is not achieved, the investigation or trial must continue.
Elements of the Crime of Damage to Property
As explained above, the crime of damage to property protects the right of ownership. The subject of the crime may be movable property or immovable property. In other words, the crime is committed when damage is caused to the victim’s movable property (such as a watch or telephone) or immovable property (such as a house or land).
The crime of damaging property is a crime that can be committed with general intent. It does not matter whether the perpetrator acted with a specific purpose when committing the act of damaging property.
The crime of damaging property is a crime that can be committed through alternative actions. The number of ways in which the act of damaging property can be committed is limited and specified in Article 151 of the Turkish Penal Code. This crime cannot be committed through actions other than those specified in the law.
According to the Turkish Penal Code, the crime of damaging property can be committed in the following ways:
1. By Damaging or Rendering the Property Unusable
If the perpetrator, through the act constituting the crime, damages the nature of the property or renders it unable to perform its intended function, the crime of damaging property is committed by damaging or rendering the property unusable.
2. Damaging Property by Destroying It
The act of demolishing refers to causing a greater change to the property than simply damaging it. For example, demolishing the wall surrounding the victim’s house.
3. Damaging Property by Destroying It
Destroying property causes it to lose its physical characteristics. Destroying property means breaking it, looting it, and ruining it. For example, breaking the windows of the victim’s car, etc.
4. Damage to Property by Destruction
As a result of the act in question, the possibility of repairing the property is eliminated. An act committed with such intensity that it renders the property impossible to repair or use again is one of the forms of damage to property known as destruction.
5. Crime of Damaging Property by Contamination
Sometimes, the act of damaging property does not harm the integrity or physical structure of the item, but merely “contaminates” it, requiring effort and expense to restore it to its original state. If the property is contaminated, the crime of damaging property by contamination is committed.
6. Crime of Damaging Property by Killing an Owned Animal
Unfortunately, in the application of the Turkish Penal Code, owned animals are considered property. According to Article 151/2 of the Turkish Penal Code, a person who kills an owned animal without a valid reason is punished under the provisions of the crime of damaging property.