Can You Be Charged With Theft Based Upon Opportunity, With No Other Evidence

[Ankit19933]

Can I be charged or convicted of theft / pickpocketing if a person says i have pickpocketed his phone as his phone was there with him and when I left the place phone was not there with him saying I only have done it.And also I was the only one standing next to him at the store. Is it enough proof argument to convict and is this argument enough to prove beyond reasonable doubt

[free9man]

What US state are you in?

Was the phone recovered in your possession? If so, it's a circumstantial case and you never know what a jury might do. If not, and you didn't actually take the phone, I don't really see how they could get a conviction off the scant information you have provided.

[Taxing Matters]

Can I be charged or convicted of theft / pickpocketing if a person says i have pickpocketed his phone as his phone was there with him and when I left the place phone was not there with him saying I only have done it.And also I was the only one standing next to him at the store. Is it enough proof argument to convict and is this argument enough to prove beyond reasonable doubt

If you are prosecuted for this theft then the question you just asked is something only the jury hearing your case can answer as the jury members are the ones who will hear the actual testimony and see any other evidence that might be admitted. Your version of the story may not be the same as the guy accusing you — his version may be stronger than what you have given us. In any event, it is the jury that weighs the evidence and decides whether it is good enough to convict.

[Mr. Knowitall]

Can I be charged or convicted of theft / pickpocketing if a person says i have pickpocketed his phone as his phone was there with him and when I left the place phone was not there with him saying I only have done it.

Have you been charged? If so, the answer is "yes". If not, then you'll have to wait and see if the police and prosecutor decide, based upon all of the evidence available to them, if there is probable cause to charge you.

If a person goes to the police and says, "I had a cell phone, I stood near [Joe Smith], and when I next checked my cell phone was missing", the police are not likely to arrest Joe on that allegation alone -- but they may find other evidence, or they may talk to Joe and obtain from him a self-incriminating statement or confession, such that charges are filed on the basis of that additional evidence.