CRIMINAL LAW

“Receiving Stolen
Property”

Prepared by:
Muhammad Izwan bin Ikhsan
▪ Offences relating to stolen property:
Dishonestly receiving/ retaining stolen
property

Dishonestly receiving/ retaining stolen

property from the commission of gang-robbery

Habitually receiving/ dealing in stolen property

Voluntary assisting in concealing/ disposal of /

making away with stolen property
▪ Whoever dishonestly receives or retains any
stolen property, knowing or having reason to
believe the same to be stolen property, shall
be punished with imprisonment for a term
which may extend to five years or with fine or
with both; and if the stolen property is a motor
vehicle or any component part of a motor
vehicle as defined in section 379A, shall be
punished with imprisonment for a term of not
less than six months and not more than five
years, and shall also be liable to fine.
1. The property is a stolen property
2. The accused received or retained the
property
3. Dishonesty
4. The accused knows or has reason to believe
the property is a stolen property
▪ Section 410(1) PC defines “stolen property”
as property the possession has been
transferred by:
▪ Theft
▪ Extortion
▪ Robbery
▪ Criminal misappropriation
▪ Criminal breach of trust
▪ Cheating
▪ Section 410(2) PC – The expression “stolen
property” includes any property that has
been converted or exchanged and anything
acquired by such conversion or exchange.
▪ Case: Cheah Yew Fatt v PP [1960]
MLJ xlvi
▪ The accused had never received the
property itself.
▪ However, the accused had knowingly
received the proceeds of sale of
property.
▪ The accused was liable for receiving
stolen property.
▪ The physical element of offence under s 411 PC
is receipt or retention of the stolen property.
▪ In practice, it is easier to prove retention (when
the accused has physical possession over the
property) than receipt (the circumstances
surrounding the receipt may be unclear &
difficult to prove.)
▪ The word “retain” ensures the conviction of a
person who innocently received the property
but decided to hold on to it after knowing the
truth that it is a stolen property.
▪ S 24 PC defines dishonesty as doing anything
with the intention of:
▪ Causing wrongful gain to one person or
▪ Causing wrongful loss to another person

▪ S 23 PC defines wrongful gain as gain by

unlawful means of property to which the person
gaining is not legally entitled.
▪ S 23 PC defines wrongful loss as loss by
unlawful means of property to which the person
losing it is legally entitled.
▪ The accused must know or has reason to
believe that the property is stolen.
▪ Knowledge is not defined by PC but it involves
actual knowledge, that the accused knew the
fact that the goods were stolen.
▪ S 26 PC: A person is said to have reason to
believe “if he has sufficient cause to believe
that thing but not otherwise.”
▪ Case: Samad Khamis vs PP [1992] 1 SLR 340
▪ The court held that the second appellant
clearly had reason to believe that the property,
marine fuel oil, was stolen property.
▪ He had purchased the oil at less than half the
market value and he knew that the oil was sold
to him at a very cheap price.
▪ If a person is found in possession of goods
that were recently stolen, that is an evidence,
in the absence of explanation to the
contrary, that the person is either the thief
or received them, knowing them to be
stolen. [s 114(a) Evidence Act 1950]
▪ To invoke s 114 presumption, it must be
proved that:
▪ The accused was in possession of the
property
▪ That this was soon after the theft
Offence Punishment
Receiving/ Accused is liable to
retaining stolen imprisonment (maximum 5
property years) or fine or both
Receiving/ Accused shall be punished
retaining motor with imprisonment (minimum 6
vehicles or months, maximum 5 years) and
components is also liable to fine