共犯

• Reading: きょうはん
• Romaji: kyohan
• Kanji breakdown: 共 (kyō/tomo) — together, joint; 犯 (han/oka) — crime, offend
• Pronunciation: /kʲoː.han/

Meaning

Complicity; joint crime; participation in a criminal act alongside another person. Also refers to an accomplice or co-offender.

A legal term describing joint criminal responsibility. Under Japanese criminal law, 共犯 encompasses 共同正犯 (co-perpetrators), 教唆犯 (instigators), and 幇助犯 (accessories). 共犯者 means 'accomplice' or 'co-conspirator.' In colloquial use, the term can refer figuratively to shared responsibility for any wrongdoing or scheme, as in being 'in it together' with someone.

Examples

1. 捜査当局は、事件の首謀者だけでなく共犯者の特定にも力を入れた。 Investigators focused not only on identifying the mastermind behind the case but also on identifying the accomplices.
2. 二人は共犯関係にあったとして、同時に逮捕された。 The two were arrested simultaneously on suspicion of being accomplices.
3. 友人を巻き込んでしまったことで、彼は自分も共犯だという罪悪感に苛まれた。 Having dragged his friend into it, he was tormented by guilt at having made himself complicit.

Usage Guide

Context: law, crime, criminal justice, legal proceedings

Tone: negative

Origin & History

From 共 (together/joint) and 犯 (crime/offence). A legal compound established in Japan's Meiji-era Penal Code, following Continental European legal frameworks, particularly French and German criminal law.

Cultural Context

Era: Modern

Generation: Adults

Social background: Universal