Discussing the sentencing standards for the crime of embezzlement in light of Song Zhe's guilty plea in the case of duty-related embezzlement

📅 2018-08-07 📂 Zhiming Hot Comments Zhiming Hot Comments 🏷️ # Song Zhe # Plead guilty in court # Embezzlement case # Sentencing standard

　　PrefaceThe case that has been in dispute for several months finally began to enter the closing phase today. According to Wang Baoqiang's attorney, Song Zhe pleaded guilty in court and requested the court to impose a lighter sentence. Because of Song Zhe's 'request for the court to impose a lighter sentence,' many netizens were dissatisfied, saying: 'Where does he get the nerve to ask for a lighter punishment?' So, how is the sentencing standard for the crime of embezzlement determined?

On July 11, the trial began for Wang Baoqiang's former agent, Song Zhe, who is suspected of the crime of embezzlement. According to Wang Baoqiang's lawyer, Song Zhe pleaded guilty in court and requested a lighter sentence from the court. According to the prosecution's accusation, from 2014 to 2016, Song Zhe, taking advantage of his position as general manager and agent of Wang Baoqiang's studio, alone or together with Xiu, used methods such as falsely reporting performances and advertisement endorsements to embezzle a total of 232.5 yuan from Wang Baoqiang Film Studio's performance and advertisement endorsement payments.

What is embezzlement of office? How is it constituted?

The crime of embezzlement of office (Article 271 of the Criminal Law) refers to the act of personnel of a company, enterprise, or other unit, using the convenience of their position to illegally appropriate the property of the unit for themselves, when the amount is relatively large.

　Sentencing standards for the crime of embezzlement of office

Article 271, Paragraph 1 of the Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China stipulates: Personnel of a company, enterprise, or other unit, who take advantage of their position to illegally appropriate the property of their unit for themselves, where the amount is relatively large, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of up to five years or criminal detention; where the amount is huge, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of more than five years, and may also be fined or have their property confiscated.

Larger amounts standard: 5,000–20,000 yuan

Large amount standard: Use 100,000 yuan as the starting point for a large amount. However, it may vary slightly in different regions due to differences in economic levels.

According to the Shanghai Municipal 'Opinions on the Standards for Handling Certain Criminal Cases in This City (Trial Implementation)':

Starting standard for 'relatively large amounts': For embezzlement of an amount of more than 15,000 yuan but less than 100,000 yuan, the penalty is fixed-term imprisonment of up to 5 years or criminal detention.

The threshold for 'a huge amount': embezzlement of 100,000 yuan or more while in office can be punished with a fixed-term imprisonment of over 5 years, and may also be subject to confiscation of property.