Even the smartest criminal committing “the perfect crime” has an Achilles Heel: something he does wrong that leads to his inevitable apprehension: a fingerprint, or DNA left behind, an accomplice who snitches, or even a traffic stop. Shane Gagnon, the so-called Spiderman burglar, was arrested on January 31st in connection with a number of sophisticated break-ins in upscale neighbourhoods in Thornhill and Forest Hill. It is alleged that Mr. Gagnon breached homes by cutting holes in the roofs of the homes, thereby bypassing security alarms. On January 31st, he is alleged to have failed to stop at a stop sign, and took police on a chase, thus giving them grounds to arrest him for dangerous driving. The police searched his vehicle, pursuant to their right to search a person and his vehicle incident to a lawful arrest, and found a cache of property tied to the break-ins, as well as surveillance equipment. Mr. Gagnon is now charged with break and enter, possession of stolen property, and other offences in relation to 31 break-ins.
The perfect crime can only be carried out by the perfect human being: someone with no human frailties or weaknesses. For example, if after going through the stop sign, Mr. Gagnon had not panicked and fled, he would not have given police grounds to arrest and search him,and he would not have been apprehended. Police cannot search a motor vehicle pursuant to charging someone with a Highway Traffic Act offence. The perfect criminal must keep his cool!
The perfect human being will not commit a crime simply because he is in need of money at that time. For example, the same panic that may have set in when Mr. Gagnon fled police may have set in when he decided to commit the break-ins in the first place because he was in need of money, resulting in a lack of careful planning and the cutting of corners.
The Perfect Criminal
The perfect criminal must be emotionless, unaffected by external factors, flawless in his approach, and smarter than the cops. The latter may not be so difficult, however, there are so many things that can go wrong when one cannot control every aspect of a situation. For example, if the police suspect someone of committing a crime, and have found DNA at the crime scene, they can only obtain a warrant for a DNA sample (via blood, urine, saliva, or hair) if they have reasonable grounds to believe the suspect’s DNA would be found at the crime scene. There is, however, another way of obtaining a DNA sample without a warrant: from the suspect’s saliva found on, for example, a discarded cigarette butt, or a coffee cup. A criminal suspect obviously has no property or privacy interest in abandoned personal property. and so the provisions in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms against unreasonable search and seizure do not apply to one’s garbage.
The perfect criminal must not leave DNA at the crime scene or on anything connected to the crime. Otherwise, he will live in fear that the police are lying in wait for him to leave behind the most miniscule of himself.
The perfect (property) crime requires the perfect escape, and the perfect way to dispose of the stolen property. No matter how perfect the crime, and the criminal, the property has to be sold to someone. Once a suspected criminal involves others, he is no longer in control of his destiny. The perfect crime requires the involvement of only one person: the perfect criminal.
The perfect criminal is not, by definition, someone who has never been caught. As there is no statute of limitations in Canada on serious crimes, the perfect criminal will always be looking over his shoulder, wondering if he truly got away with it. The perfect criminal will also not underestimate the police and will keep his mouth shut by not telling anyone about his misdeeds.
Just because the perfect criminal gets caught doesn’t mean he will be convicted. The perfect criminal will heed the advice of The Criminal Law Team, which is: to keep his mouth shut, and call us anytime, 24/7, if he has been, or is about to be, arrested.
The Reid Technique
Even the perfect criminal isn’t aware of the Reid Technique, a very effective method of interrogation employed by the police to extract confessions from suspects and accused persons. The Criminal Law Team will prepare him for his interrogation by reviewing with him the approach to be taken by his adversary, the police. If he is charged with, for example, domestic assault, theft, break and enter, or even a very serious violent crime such as murder, manslaughter, or aggravated assault, It is our job to assess the evidence against him. Whether he is the perfect criminal or not (you can see by the foregoing that we rarely come across this type of individual), we will develop the best arguments for his acquittal. We cannot undue what has already been done, however, we don’t need a perfect criminal as a client to get him an excellent result. Visit our website at www.thecriminallawteam.ca and read our client testimonials. See how The Criminal Law Team works.