Legal Definitions - peculatus

Peculatus is a term from Roman law that describes the offense of stealing or embezzling public funds or property. It specifically refers to the unlawful appropriation of resources that belong to the state or the community, typically by someone who has been entrusted with their care or management. In essence, it is the theft of public money or assets.

• Example 1: A high-ranking official in a municipal government is responsible for managing the budget allocated for public health initiatives. Instead of using the funds to purchase necessary medical supplies and equipment for local clinics, the official secretly diverts a significant portion of the money into a private bank account, using it to buy luxury items for themselves.

  This illustrates peculatus because the official, entrusted with public funds for a specific community purpose, unlawfully stole and misused those funds for personal enrichment.

• Example 2: The director of a state-owned utility company, which provides electricity to an entire region, inflates the costs of maintenance contracts with a fictitious company. The payments for these non-existent services are then funneled back to the director and their associates, effectively siphoning off millions from the company's operational budget, which is derived from public tariffs and government subsidies.

  This scenario demonstrates peculatus as the director is embezzling public funds (from a state-owned enterprise) through fraudulent schemes, thereby stealing resources that ultimately belong to the public.

• Example 3: An administrator overseeing a national disaster relief fund, established to help communities recover from a major flood, approves grants to several non-existent charities. The money, intended for rebuilding homes and infrastructure, is instead transferred to bank accounts controlled by the administrator and their accomplices.

  Here, peculatus is clearly shown as the administrator, in a position of trust over public funds designated for disaster relief, actively facilitates the theft of those funds by approving false expenditures for personal gain.