PENAL CODE of the Democratic Republic of Timor Leste TITLE IV CRIMES AGAINST ASSETS CHAPTER I CRIMES AGAINST PROPERTY Article 251. Larceny 1. Any person who, with unlawful intent to appropriate for him or herself or another party, takes a moveable object belonging to another, is punishable with up to 3 years imprisonment or a fine. 2. The attempt is punishable. 3. Prosecution depends on the filing of a complaint. Article 252. Aggravated larceny 1. Any person who commits the acts referred to in the preceding article is punishable with 2 to 8 years imprisonment if: a) The moveable property belonging to the other party is of high scientific, artistic or historical value or is of importance to economic or technological development; b) The moveable property belonging to the other party is a vehicle, is carried in a public transportation vehicle or by a passenger in a public transportation vehicle, or is at a pier or departure or arrival terminal; c) The moveable property belonging to the other party is used for religious worship or veneration of the memory of the deceased and is found at a place of worship or a cemetery; d) The perpetrator commits the act at night to more easily commit the act of larceny; e) The victim suffers considerable loss as a result of said appropriation; f) The perpetrator enters a home, public facilities, commercial or industrial establishment with the intent to commit larceny; g) The perpetrator employs lockpicking, scaling or breaking in to achieve said purpose; h) The perpetrator takes advantage of a situation of special vulnerability of a victim of a disaster, accident or calamity; i) The perpetrator takes advantage of the existence of a special relationship of trust with the victim or with the owner of the site where the property to be stolen is located; j) The perpetrator commits larceny as a livelihood; k) The crime is committed by 3 or more persons, including the perpetrator; l) The value of the property stolen exceeds US$ 1,000.00, but is less than US$5,000.00. 2. If the value of the property taken exceeds US$ 5,000.00, the penalty shall be 3 to 10 years imprisonment. 3. Whenever more than one of the circumstances described in the previous subarticles occur, only one shall be considered for effectively determining the applicable scope of the specific crime defined in law, and it shall be the one having the greatest effect, while the others shall be weighed as general circumstances in determining the penalty. 66