WHAT IS A THREAT CRIME?
The crime of threat is a crime against freedom and is defined in Article 106 of the Turkish Penal Code. A notification against a person that an unjust and unlawful harm will be done to himself or his relative is called a threat. The act of threatening is an act that disturbs the peace of mind and inner peace of people and violates the freedom of will of the victim. For this reason, the legal value protected by the crime of threat is the peace and tranquility of the people. In addition, the crime of threat is a crime that can be committed intentionally.
Threatening a person by mentioning that he or his relatives will commit an attack on his life, physical or sexual immunity, Article 106/1-1 of the TCK. constitutes the simple form of the threat crime in the sentence and is prosecuted ex officio. Ex officio prosecution means that the follow-up of the crime is not dependent on the complaint. Even if the victim of the crime is not a complainant, this crime can be investigated automatically by the prosecutor’s office.
On the other hand, TCK article 106/1-2. The situation in the sentence is to threaten the person with the talk that he will cause great damage to his assets or do other harm. Here, the investigation and prosecution of the crime depends on the complaint.
WITH WHICH ACTIONS CAN BE COMMITTED TO THE THREAT CRIME?
The act constituting the threat crime; It can be processed through words, writings, gestures, pictures, symbols, shapes, signs and communication. Today, the most common form of threat crime takes place through communication tools and social media. To give an example of some threatening words from the decisions of the Supreme Court; Words such as “I will show you”, “I will ask you to account”, you will pass in front of our door, then you will see” constitute the crime of threat.
WHO CAN BE COMMITTED TO THE THREAT CRIMES?
Anyone can be a victim of threatening crime. However, in order for Article 106 of the TPC to occur, the person to whom the threat is directed must be certain. Because the threat against the masses consisting of unidentified people is defined as another crime and constitutes the crime of threat in order to create fear and panic among the people in Article 213 of the TCK.
The crime of threatening may be directed at a person, or it may be directed at the relatives of that person. Therefore, in the definition of the law, it is decided that if he is threatened that an attack will occur against “himself or his relatives”, a crime will occur. For this reason, the act of threatening need not be directed only at the person. A crime also occurs if the person’s relatives are threatened that they will also be harmed. The most important thing is that as a result of the threat, the inner peace of the person or his relatives is disturbed, causing them to fall into fear and anxiety. The expression “relative” mentioned in the law should not be understood only as the spouse or relatives of the person. Because anyone who has a close relationship with them, friends, associates or relatives can be considered close.
WHO CAN COMMIT A THREAT CRIME?
Threats can be committed by anyone. It can be processed by a single person, or it can be processed by more than one person together. If the threatening crime is committed by more than one person together, the penalty to be imposed in accordance with TCK article 106/2-c is increased. In particular, if the crime of threatening is committed by a public official using the means given to him by the public office, the penalty of the crime is increased in accordance with Article 266 of the TCK.
WHAT IS THE SITUATION REQUESTING REDUCED PENALTY FOR THREAT CRIME?
The situation requiring the reduction of the penalty in the crime of threatening is included in TCK article 106/1-c.2. Accordingly, the threat that the person will cause great damage to his assets or do other harm is regulated as a situation that requires the penalty to be reduced. In addition, the follow-up of this situation depends on the complaint.
