Crimes cibernéticos: o estelionato sentimental e a punibilidade no Código Penal Brasileiro

Abstract

The fraud, as in the Brazilian Penal Code, article 171, is described as the act or intention “to obtain for themselves or for others, an unlawful advantage at the expense of others, inducing or keeping someone in error, through artifice, trickery or any fraudulent means". However, what is the limit that must be drawn when the agent's motivation of a financial nature, runs through “sentimental” fraud inducing the victim to believe that the delivery of its assets comes from the daily life of a loving relationship? To these cases it is possible the application of a major penalty, either due to the abuse of trust or due to the clumsiness that characterizes the offender's moral conduct. In these perspective, Brazilian penal code should follow the evolution of society to encompass the new types of penalties as sentimental fraud.