A private motorcycle with the key not removed was returned to a friend. The prosecutor charged him with theft. The High Court found that he used theft and acquitted him.

Mr. Huang privately rode his motorcycle without the key out to visit a friend and returned it to its original location. The prosecutor charged him with theft based on the consumption of gasoline. The Tainan High Court considered this to be within the scope of "use of theft" and the acquittal was confirmed. (Photo by reporter Wang Jie)

Is stealing someone else's motorcycle and then returning it secretly considered stealing gasoline? A man surnamed Huang twice rode off someone else's motorcycle without the key. Afterwards, the original motorcycle was returned. The prosecutor found him guilty of stealing gasoline and charged him with the crime of theft. After a trial, the Tainan Branch of the High Court held that this was within the scope of "theft by use" and was not subject to criminal punishment. It rejected the prosecutor's appeal and upheld his innocence.

In late July last year, Huang Nan discovered that the motorcycle owners surnamed Lin and Ling had not removed their motorcycle keys on two roadsides in Yunlin County, and then he rode privately to visit friends. Mr. Huang used the car for about an hour and an hour and a half respectively. Afterwards, he took the initiative to ride the car back to its original place and park it. The prosecutor believed that driving a vehicle would inevitably consume gasoline. Huang Man rode away other people's vehicles for no reason without replenishing the fuel, which showed his illegal intention to take it for himself, so he was charged with theft.

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After the first-instance verdict, the prosecutor appealed and emphasized that Huang rode two motorcycles in a short period of time, knowing that riding would consume gasoline but did not compensate, and he had the subjective intention to steal gasoline. Huang Man argued that he only borrowed the motorcycle temporarily to go to a friend, knowing that the car belonged to someone else, so he returned the motorcycle to the original owner before the police came to investigate, and had no intention of taking the vehicle or gasoline as his own.

After the trial, the Tainan High Court pointed out that the crime of criminal theft requires "unlawful intent" as an essential element. If it is only used for one's own temporary use and then returned, it is considered "use theft" in theory and is not a subject of criminal punishment. Huang Man rode the bicycle for only about an hour and then put it back to the original place, with the intention of returning it; and the consumption of gasoline while driving is only an inevitable result of using the car, and it cannot be concluded that he was riding for the purpose of stealing gas. The whole case was a civil dispute and could not be punished with criminal liability, so the innocence was maintained.