Is there such thing as "the perfect crime?"?

Question

What is the perfect crime?

Answer 1

There is no perfect crime. Everyone gets caught sooner or later.

Answer 2

A perfect crime is a crime committed so perfectly that no evidence is apparent, and the culprit cannot be traced.

Since evidence must be matched to find the culprit, the best way to commit a perfect crime appears to be one outside the circle of suspects that police can question. In practice, however, those who commit serious crimes are usually linked to the victim in some way, and the police know from experience which people to question. A crime based on a chance meeting, such as a rape followed by murder or a mugging, can go undetected if no connection remains. A rapist will, however, most likely leave his DNA in the form of semen and sustain minor injuries that might betray him. A mugger will take the belongings of his victim which can give him away. Moreover, the police will have the fingerprints and DNA of convicted felons on file. Many successful criminals spend stolen money too freely, or brag about their crime.

Thus a murder committed by somebody who had never before met the victim, has no criminal record, steals nothing and doesn't tell anyone might easily be a perfect crime, but it might be apparently motiveless.

The case of Leopold and Loeb is an American case that was almost a perfect crime, but they overlooked one small detail, and both perpetrators landed in prison.

Would-be perfect crimes are a popular subject in crime fiction and movies. They include Double Indemnity, Strangers on a Train, The Postman Always Rings Twice, Witness for the Prosecution, and Dial M for Murder.

No doubt many perfect crimes may have been committed and remain undiscovered. It should also be noted that police are fallible, and some crimes might have been solved if the police had better resources at their disposal or had not overlooked vital evidence. In the well-known case of Jack the Ripper, plenty of evidence was left at the crime scenes, but the crimes were never solved.

Some crimes such as the Zodiac murders of the late 1960s, the Tylenol scare of 1982, and the Diane Suzuki case of 1985 are referred to as perfect, but the possibility always remains that a culprit will ultimately be identified.

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perfect_crime"

Answer 3

There is no such thing as "the perfect crime" with the forensics tools law enforcement has. Everyone who commits a crime gets caught sooner or later. It might take months or years, but forensics will eventually catch up with you.

Answer 4

Well what i can tell you is in the UK crime pays, so even if you get nicked your OK because the prisons are so soft, especially if your under 18. Colour TV in every cell, DVD players, PlayStation 2, 3 good meals a day, almost no discipline to keep you in line, and believe it or not some of these youngsters commit the crime so they can come back, no wonder crime is a problem .

Answer 5

After watching Dateline last night, I believe there may be one. If you never saw the show, an expectant mother offered the baby to a pair of couples that were desperate to adopt, took money from each, with absolutely no intent to let either couple adopt. She also had previously scammed another pair of couples. In all cases, local DA's as well as the FBI either refused to prosecute or had no idea what to charge them with. Talk about a perfect fraud. This was one of the coldest and most heartless scams I have ever seen. Shame on her and the system that is too inept to prosecute.

Answer 6

The perfect crime would be one that was never discovered and investigated. "If a tree falls in the forest and there is no one there to hear it did it make a sound?"

Thus by definition, a crime that has been discovered is not perfect!

Answer 7

I live in South Africa, and there are approximately 20,000 murders committed every year. Out of that amount, only about 3000 make it to court, and out of that, only 50% are convicted. So, that means that there are approximately 18,500 perfect murders in the country every year, and that is only for murders. That doesn't even touch on rape (1 every 4 minutes) or hi-jacking (1 every 5 minutes). What do you think?

Answer 8

NO!!! Law Enforcement is more advanced than it was even 20 years ago, so there wouldbe never be a perfect crime any longer.

Answer 9

The perfect crime will always be a mystery to anyone who hasn't thought of it.

Answer 10

One that:
* relies upon nobody else,
* you can 'proxy' yourself from the crime,
* if you must be present ensure that you leave no DNA/fingerprints/CCTV etc,
* have the capability to move your prize without trace yourself,
* when you cash-in be able to gradually change your life-style, and
* if you have the guts commit your crime against a criminal who will not report your crime and have ability to trace it back to yourself.