Proving Property Damage in Economic Criminal Offenses

The primary concerns of this paper are to define peculiarities of proving property dam age in the course of pre-trial investigation into economic criminal offenses. It is demonstrated that proving property damage in economic criminal offenses is an obligatory component of criminal procedure. According to these types of criminal offenses, evidence collection falls within the investigator’s competency. However, certain studies are the exclusive domain of forensic experts, specialists, auditors, etc. The damage resulting from a criminal offense should be proven in criminal proceedings. It is also vital to introduce a set of compensation (indemnification) measures both at the pre-trial stage and during the criminal trial. Under the general rule, tangible and intangible benefits shall be indemnified or compensated for in criminal proceedings. During the pre-trial investigation stage, documents are collected, witnesses, victims, and suspects are interrogated, and forensic examinations are initiated to verify the occurrence of property damage. The choice of a particular measure depends on the stage of criminal proceedings, peculiarities of the investigative situation, and realization that the planned measure’s purpose can be fulfilled under these conditions. The author outlines some aspects of proving property damage in economic criminal offenses, for most of which it is of decisive importance in the context of criminal law. Our subsequent research will focus on the legal, organizational, and tactical principles involved in collecting evidence of property damage during the pre-trial investigation of economic crimes.