正犯(せいはん)

せいはん
noun
principal (offender); person who commits the crime directly
formallaw
1. principal (offender); person who commits the crime directly
A legal term for the person who personally carries out the criminal act, as opposed to an accomplice or accessory. Under Japanese criminal law, the principal is distinguished from those who merely aid, abet, or instigate the crime, and is generally subject to the full penalty.
彼(かれ)が正犯(せいはん)だ。
He is the principal offender.
正犯(せいはん)と共犯(きょうはん)は区別(くべつ)される。
A distinction is made between principal offenders and accomplices.
警察(けいさつ)はその男(おとこ)を事件(じけん)の正犯(せいはん)と断定(だんてい)した。
The police concluded that the man was the principal offender in the case.
裁判(さいばん)では被告(ひこく)が正犯(せいはん)か従犯(じゅうはん)かをめぐって激(はげ)しい議論(ぎろん)が交(か)わされた。
At the trial, heated arguments were exchanged over whether the defendant was the principal or an accessory.

Composed of 正(せい) (main; direct) and 犯(はん) (perpetrator; crime). The 正(せい) prefix marks the direct, main actor — contrasted with 共(きょう) (joint) in 共犯(きょうはん) or 従(じゅう) (secondary) in 従犯(じゅうはん).

Usage

A technical criminal-law term used in the Penal Code, court judgments, and crime reporting. In everyday speech, people say 犯人(はんにん) instead. Japanese law recognizes several categories of 正犯(せいはん): 単独(たんどく)正犯(せいはん) (sole principal), 共同(きょうどう)正犯(せいはん) (co-principals who act together), and 間接(かんせつ)正犯(せいはん) (indirect principal — one who uses another as a tool).

Common collocations

Similar words

  • 共犯(きょうはん): accomplice; co-offender — general term for anyone involved besides the sole principal
  • 従犯(じゅうはん): accessory — one who helps the principal but does not directly carry out the crime
  • 主犯(しゅはん): ringleader; chief perpetrator — a media/everyday word emphasizing the leader of a group, not a strict legal category
  • 犯人(はんにん): offender; culprit — the general, non-technical word for whoever did it

Related Words

Compare: 共犯(きょうはん) (accomplice)
Compare: 主犯(しゅはん) (ringleader)
Compare: 犯人(はんにん) (offender)
general
Added 2026.4.14 3:07 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:02
23500/23640_seihan