For the investigation of criminal cases, the general period is set, which is two months. But there are additional conditions, in the presence of which the specified period can be repeatedly extended.
The duration of the investigation of criminal cases is established by the criminal procedure legislation. When resolving this issue, it is recommended to be guided by Article 162 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation, which establishes the total duration of the preliminary investigation at two months from the moment of initiation of a criminal case. When calculating this period, it should be borne in mind that the two-month period does not include time intervals for which the investigation was suspended for any reason. The aforementioned norm provides a number of possibilities, using which the investigating authorities can extend the minimum period for the investigation of a criminal case.
How long can the investigation be extended?
The term of investigation of any criminal case may be extended by the head of the investigative body without any reason for up to three months. For further extension, it is necessary that the investigation of the criminal case is particularly difficult. In this case, the investigation period can be increased to twelve months, however, such a decision can only be made by the head of the investigative committee (another investigative body) for the subject of our country. The particular complexity of the case under investigation is an evaluative concept, which is not disclosed in any way in the criminal procedural legislation, therefore, in fact, the investigation in any case can be extended to the named annual duration. At the same time, the specified period is not final, since further resolution of this issue goes to the highest level.
Can the investigation be extended for more than a year?
Article 162 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation allows the Chairman of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation, the head of another investigative body at the federal level to extend the period of investigation of a criminal case for a period of more than twelve months. At the same time, the maximum extension period by the decision of these officials has not been established, and there are no specific grounds for issuing an appropriate resolution. Consequently, with the current state of legal regulation, it is possible to make an unambiguous conclusion that there is no maximum duration of the investigation of criminal cases, since the period established by law can increase indefinitely, for which decisions of the heads of the investigative bodies of different levels are used.
