Luanda - The Angolan Penal Code and Criminal Procedure Codes came into force last Thursday (11 February), 90 days after being promulgated and published in the Official Gazette.
The two laws were approved in 2020 by the National Assembly (parliament), in one of its plenary meetings.
Among the great innovations of the Law of the Penal Code is the criminalization of computer crimes, punishable by imprisonment of up to 2 years or a fine of up to 240 days.
There is also an increase in the penalty for improper receipt of advantages, from one to five years in prison and the elimination of the alternative fine, as well as an increase in the maximum limit of the penal framework to three years and the corresponding fine to 360 days.
For embezzlement, the sentences are from one to five years, if the value of the subtracted thing is not high, three to 10 years if the value is high, and five to 14 years in prison, if the value is considerably high.
In relation to environmental crimes, there is a worsening of the penal framework of one to five years in prison and the elimination of the alternative fine, for exceeding the limit.
The newness in all this is the entry of the concept of “crime of active and passive corruption” in the public and private sector, articles 459 and 460 of the Penal Code.
