Legal Definitions - burgator

The term burgator is a historical legal term. It refers to an individual who unlawfully enters a building or an enclosed space with the intent to commit a crime, most commonly theft. In contemporary legal language, this act is known as burglary.

Here are some examples illustrating the concept of a burgator:

• Imagine a person, late at night, who forces open a locked window of a residential home while the occupants are away. Their intention is to steal valuable electronics and jewelry from inside.

  This individual would historically be referred to as a burgator because they unlawfully entered an enclosed space (the home) with criminal intent.

• Consider a scenario where an individual uses a crowbar to pry open the back door of a closed convenience store after business hours. Once inside, they proceed to empty the cash register and take merchandise.

  This act aligns with the definition of a burgator, as it involves the forcible entry into a commercial building (an enclosed space) to commit theft.

• An individual cuts the padlock on a storage unit at a self-storage facility, gaining unauthorized access to the contents within, planning to take items they believe are valuable.

  In this instance, the storage unit, despite being smaller than a house or store, constitutes an "enclosed space." The act of breaking the lock and entering with criminal intent fits the historical definition of a burgator.