Okuzeka
Criminal Law & Justice vocabulary · Elements of Crime & Liability

Accomplice

Meaning in criminal law & justice, with examples

/əˈkʌmplɪs/nounCommon term

In criminal law & justice, accomplice means: A person who helps someone else commit a crime, for example by planning it, keeping watch or driving the getaway car.

In Turkish: suç ortağı, şerik, suça iştirak eden

How it is used

Used in news and court reports: 'he and an accomplice', 'an accomplice to murder', 'police are looking for a second accomplice'. In many systems an accomplice can be punished as if they had committed the crime themselves. Lawyers also speak of people who 'aid and abet' a crime.

Example sentences

  1. The robber's accomplice waited outside in a stolen car.

  2. She was convicted as an accomplice even though she never entered the bank.

  3. Detectives believe he had at least one accomplice.

Common collocations

  • an accomplice to
  • alleged accomplice
  • act as an accomplice
  • aid and abet
  • perpetratorThe person who actually committed a crime or a harmful act; a formal word used by police, courts and researchers.
  • offenderA person who has committed a crime, especially one who has been convicted; the word is common in sentencing, prisons and probation.
  • robberyThe crime of stealing from a person or place by using force or the threat of force.
  • criminal liabilityLegal responsibility for a crime, which means that a person can be prosecuted and punished for it.

More terms: Elements of Crime & Liability

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This page explains English vocabulary for learners. It is not legal advice.