Criminal breach of trust in a scam case

What criminal breach of trust means

Criminal breach of trust happens when someone who was entrusted with your property, money, or access to an account misuses it for their own benefit. It is an offence under Section 405 of the Penal Code, punishable under Section 406, built around a relationship of trust rather than a stranger’s lie.

The key element is that the person had lawful control of the property in the first place, and then dishonestly used it in a way you did not authorise. This sets it apart from theft, where the person never had permission to hold the property at all.

It sits alongside cheating as one of the criminal offences a scam or fraud case may fall under.

How it differs from cheating

Cheating usually involves someone deceiving you into handing over money or property in the first place, such as through a fake investment platform or a false promise. Breach of trust involves someone who already had lawful access and then misused it.

An employee who diverts company funds, a business partner who moves shared money for personal use, or someone given authority over your account who then empties it are typical examples. Making a police report lets investigators assess which offence, or offences, fit the facts.

Common situations where it comes up

This charge often arises in business email compromise cases where an employee’s access was misused, or in family and partnership disputes where money was held for a shared purpose and then diverted. It can also apply when someone managing your investments on your behalf uses the funds differently from what was agreed.

The relationship of trust does not need to be formal or written down, but there does need to be a clear basis for it.

What a criminal charge does and does not do for you

A criminal charge punishes the offence and can result in a conviction, but it does not automatically return your money. Any compensation a criminal court orders is separate from, and often more limited than, what a civil claim can pursue.

Pursuing both a police report and a civil claim gives you two separate paths that can run alongside each other, each with a different purpose.

What to do next

Set out clearly what was entrusted, to whom, for what purpose, and how it was misused. This timeline is what investigators and a lawyer will both need.

From there, understanding whether a civil claim is realistic alongside a police report is worth working through with someone who can look at your specific facts.