Authorities take aim at pengci

法律首次明确界定“碰瓷”

Three top judicial¹ organs issued a guideline on Wednesday to clarify the application of the law in extortion cases involving deliberately² fabricated accidents or similar scenarios³. The guideline was issued by the Ministry⁴ of Public Security, the Supreme⁵ People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate.

最高人民法院、最高人民检察院、公安部10月14日联合发布指导意见，明确了故意制造事故或类似情形的敲诈勒索案件的法律适用。

For the first time, authorities have defined the pengci scam, in which people pretend they have been harmed by another party and then ask that party for money or property as compensation.

这是有关部门首次对“碰瓷”行为作出准确界定。“碰瓷”是指行为人假装被另一方所害，向其索赔财物的行为。

The guideline stipulates⁶ punishment for the two main types of pengci - fraud and extortion.

指导意见明确了对碰瓷的主要两种类型——诈骗和敲诈勒索的处罚。

Perpetrators who intentionally⁸ or negligently⁹ cause harm to others while carrying out pengci scams may be charged with the crimes of intentional⁷ homicide, intentional injury, negligently causing death and negligently causing serious injury to others, the guideline said.

指导意见明确，犯罪分子在实施“碰瓷”中，故意或过失对他人造成伤害的，可以故意杀人罪、故意伤害罪、过失致人死亡罪和过失致人重伤罪论处。

It also stipulates that whoever deliberately causes a traffic accident and blackmails¹¹ the victim utilizing¹² the victim's violation¹³ of provisions on road passage, which meets the related provisions of the Criminal Law, will be punished under the crime of extortion by blackmail¹⁰.

“碰瓷”团伙若故意制造交通事故进而利用被害人违反道路通行规定等相要挟的，符合刑法有关规定的，以敲诈勒索罪定罪处罚。