Theft: Difference between revisions

[[File:Festnahme 4 (ex3179) sml.jpg|thumb|right|The great thieves are leading away the little thief. ~ [[Diogenes of Sinope]]]]

[[File:W.E.B. DuBois - NARA - 559200.tif|thumb|Suppose to-day Negroes do steal; who was it that for centuries made stealing a virtue by stealing their labor? ~ [[Booker T. Washington]] and [[W. E. B. Du Bois]]]]

'''[[w:Theft|Theft]]''' is the illegal taking of another person's property without that person's permission or consent. The word is also used as an informal shorthand term for some crimes against property, such as burglary, embezzlement, larceny, looting, robbery, shoplifting and fraud. In some jurisdictions, theft is considered to be synonymous with larceny; in others, theft has replaced larceny. Someone who carries out an act of or makes a career of theft is known as a '''thief'''. The act of theft is known by terms such as '''stealing''', '''thieving''', and '''filching'''.