When a threat is a crime

Often in everyday life, in conflict situations, people use phrases that, by their content, pose a threat to the legal rights and interests of others. As a rule, such statements are expressed in the form of insults or threats, while there is no intention to carry out the stated threats. However, not everyone is aware that under certain circumstances, expressed threats can be regarded as a crime.

Thus, in accordance with Article 186 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus, criminal liability is provided for threats of murder, causing serious bodily harm, or destruction of property in a socially dangerous manner, if there are grounds to fear its implementation. The sanction of the article provides for a maximum punishment of imprisonment for up to 3 years.

The Prosecutor's Office of the Braslav District supported the state prosecution in the district court in a criminal case against B. for committing a crime provided for by Article 186 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus – a threat of murder, if there were grounds to fear its implementation.

During the court investigation, it was established that on one of the days in March 2023, in the evening, while in a state of intoxication, being at his place of residence, during a quarrel with his wife, B. inflicted bodily harm on her and, using knives, threatened her with murder, taking specific actions that manifested in directing a knife towards her, striking her arm with a knife, showing her knives, and repeatedly expressing a threat of murder, which the victim perceived as a real threat of murder and had grounds to fear its implementation in the given circumstances.

In the court session, B. fully admitted his guilt in the crime attributed to him under Article 186 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus. It was also established that the accused had previously been convicted for a similar crime. In conjunction with the conclusions of expert examinations, protocols of operational-search activities, investigative actions, physical evidence, and other written materials of the case, thoroughly examined during the court investigation, B.'s guilt in committing the crime provided for by Article 186 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus was proven in full.

Considering the position of the state prosecution, the court found B. guilty of committing the crime provided for by Article 186 of the Criminal Code and sentenced him to corrective labor at his place of work with a deduction of 20 percent of his earnings, but not less than one basic amount, monthly to the state budget for a period of 1 year.
The verdict has not entered into legal force and may be appealed and contested in the appellate procedure.

Senior Assistant Prosecutor
Braslav District                                                                               E.S.Isakova