The intentional unlawful taking of property from the owner, carer, controller, or custodian of that property with the use and/or threat of immediate force or violence.

Robbery involving any of the following aggravating circumstances:

• Committed in company (i.e. by two or more persons)
• Infliction of physical injury on the person
• Possession of a weapon or imitation weapon, whether used or not

• Armed “hold-up” in a shop or other premises where money or valuables may be stored
• Carjacking or mugging involving physical injury, use of a weapon, and/or more than one offender
• Robbery from a premises involving physical injury, use of a weapon, and/or more than one offender
• Other aggravated robbery

• Shoplifting, or theft from retail premises – coded to 0730 Theft from retail premises
• Taking of a hostage – coded to 0430 Deprivation of liberty or false imprisonment
• Unlawful entry with intent – coded to relevant groups in 06 Burglary

Robbery where there is no physical injury, no use of a weapon, and only one offender.

• Carjacking or mugging where there is no physical injury, no use of a weapon, and only one offender
• Robbery from retail premises where there is no physical injury, no use of a weapon, and only one offender
• Other non-aggravated robbery

• Illegal entry to a shop for the purposes of theft – coded to groups in 062 Burglary of a non-residential building 
• Pickpocketing or bag snatching without threat or physical harm – coded to 0720 Theft from a person
• Shoplifting, or theft from retail premises – coded to 0730 Theft from retail premises
• Use of threats to demand money that is not face-to-face, for example via an email, letter, text message, or phone call – coded to 0520 Blackmail or other extortion

Extortion is characterised by an unlawful demand with intent to gain a benefit such as money or property, or with intent to cause detriment to a person, and use of coercive measures to be carried out in the future if the demand is not met.

Coercive measures include, but are not limited to, the threat of force or violence, misuse of authority, criminal prosecution, destruction of a person’s reputation or social standing, or destruction of a person’s property.

The victim may be a person or organisation, and coercive measures may relate to the victim or other people.

Blackmail is one form of extortion, where the threat is to release harmful information or images. There are also other forms of extortion, for example where something is taken or held (such as data through ransomware, or highly valued personal property through theft), and money or other assets are demanded in exchange for its return.

• Blackmail
• Demands for ransom, including use of ransomware
• Industrial or corporate extortion
• Sexual extortion (“sextortion”)
• Use of malware or phishing for extortion
• Use threats to demand money or property via email, letter, text message, or phone call
• Other extortion offences

• Kidnap a person for ransom or gain – coded to 0420 Abduction or kidnapping
• Online scams that use deception rather than threat – coded to 0812 Online scams
• Sexual extortion of a child – coded to 0341 Produce or distribute child abuse material