Criminal Offences of Piracy in Polish Criminal Legislation

Abstract

The author of the article made an attempt to thoroughly analyze prohibited acts aimed at penalization of the criminal actions closely connected with piracy. Perpetrators of maritime offences committed on both open and inland sea – in case when they will be under the jurisdiction of the Polish law – can commit prohibited acts included in chapters XIX, XX, XXXII and XXXV of the Polish Penal Code of 1997, which are respectively aimed against health and life, common security, public order and property, of course this set of acts is not completed. It is not possible to predict all of the pirates’ actions. However, especially perpetrators (pirates), can – by their actions – fulfill such characteristic features of offences as: taking a ship into possession (art. 166 of the Penal Code), placement on the ship dangerous device or substance (art. 167 of the Penal Code), piracy (art. 170 of the Penal Code), participation in an organized crime or gang (art. 258 of the Penal Code). Summing up, taking into account the author’s aim of the description of offences in terms of piracy in Polish criminal law, only the problems connected with maritime aspects of prohibited acts were described.