How Much Does It Cost to Close a Criminal Case? Lawful Routes Instead of a Bribe

“How much does it cost to close a criminal case?” – we are asked this often. The short answer: a criminal case cannot be “bought”. If you offer money to an investigator or prosecutor, the problem will not go away – a new one will appear: new criminal proceedings may be opened against you. Nor is there any guarantee that the case will actually be closed afterwards.

At the same time, the law provides several lawful ways to bring criminal proceedings to an end. Here is what they are and how they differ.

Why “making a deal” with the investigator is a crime

• offering or promising an official an improper advantage, as well as providing one, is a separate crime (part 1 of Article 369 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, CC); liability arises for the offer itself, even if no money has changed hands;
• under part 1 of Article 369 CC the penalty is a fine of 1,000 to 4,000 tax-free minimum incomes, restriction of liberty or imprisonment for two to four years; where the act is repeated, committed by a group of persons or involves an official holding a responsible or particularly responsible position, the penalty is more severe – up to imprisonment for five to ten years (parts 2–4 of Article 369 CC);
• it is a corruption offence (note to Article 45 CC), and for corruption offences the law expressly rules out release from criminal liability on the grounds of effective repentance or reconciliation (Articles 45 and 46 CC).

Lawful ways to end criminal proceedings

1. Closing criminal proceedings

Proceedings are closed, among other things, where (part 1 of Article 284 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine, CrPC):

• the absence of the criminal offence has been established (clause 1);
• the absence of elements of a criminal offence in the act has been established (clause 2);
• no sufficient evidence has been obtained to prove the person’s guilt in court, and the options to obtain it have been exhausted (clause 3).

A ruling on closure is adopted by the investigator, inquiry officer or prosecutor, depending on the ground and on whether anyone has been notified of suspicion; the ruling can be appealed (part 4 of Article 284 CrPC). The defence’s task is to gather and submit evidence that supports such a ground.

2. Reconciliation with the victim

The law provides two mechanisms with different consequences:

• release from criminal liability – where a first-time offender has committed a minor crime, or a minor offence through negligence, has reconciled with the victim and has compensated the losses or remedied the damage (Article 46 CC). Exceptions include corruption offences and driving while intoxicated. The proceedings are closed by the court (clause 1 of part 2 of Article 284 CrPC), and there is no conviction. The person may object to closure on this ground – the proceedings then continue under the general procedure (part 3 of Article 285 CrPC);
• reconciliation agreement – possible in proceedings concerning minor crimes, minor offences and in private prosecution proceedings (part 3 of Article 469 CrPC). But this is not closure: the court delivers a judgment approving the agreement and imposing the punishment agreed by the parties (part 1 of Article 475 CrPC).

3. Plea agreement with the prosecutor

• it may be initiated by the prosecutor or by the suspect or accused (part 2 of Article 469 CrPC);
• it is not available in all proceedings: for corruption offences and especially grave crimes only under additional conditions, and where there are victims – only with the written consent of all of them (part 4 of Article 469 CrPC);
• it does not close the proceedings: the court delivers a judgment that meets the general requirements for a conviction and imposes the agreed punishment (parts 1 and 2 of Article 475 CrPC);
• once the agreement is approved, the right to appeal the judgment is restricted (part 2 of Article 473 CrPC).

An agreement may be initiated at any time after the person is notified of suspicion, until the court retires to the deliberations room (part 5 of Article 469 CrPC). If no agreement is reached, the fact that it was negotiated and what was said to reach it are not treated as pleading guilty (part 6 of Article 469 CrPC).

Before you offer or sign anything

• do not offer money and do not accept “intermediaries” who promise to “sort things out”;
• do not sign an agreement until you understand the consequences: it means a conviction with an agreed punishment, not the closure of the case;
• talk to an advocate: they will assess whether there are grounds for closure, release from liability or an agreement in your particular proceedings.

This material is general in nature and is not a substitute for advice on your specific situation.

Facing criminal proceedings? An advocate will assess the lawful ways to bring them to an end → Criminal defence · Closing criminal proceedings · Plea and reconciliation agreements