Terrorists, assassins, murderers, killers, poisoners, rapists, drug dealers, kidnappers, counterfeiters, robbers, muggers, burglars, thieves, bootleggers, conmen, [[ArsonMurderAndJayWalking and little cheats]]. These characters will tend to be involved with CrimeAndPunishmentTropes.

Villains like the CorruptCorporateExecutive, CorruptPolitician, or TheEmperor and other LawfulEvil villains are per definition not included, even if you may consider them as a kind of criminal. Since HiredGuns usually work for the highest bidder, they often fall into a legally grey area, though some are just outright criminals. Also, don't list more fantastic villains like the MadScientist, [[EvilSorceror evil wizards]], or {{Evil Overlord}}s here.
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!!Tropes:
[[index]]
[floatboxright:
'''UsefulNotes:'''
+ {{UsefulNotes/Criminals}} (real life)

'''Categories:'''
+ ConMan
+ HiredGuns
+ OrganizedCrimeTropes
+ PirateTropes
+ SmugglingIndex
+ StealThisIndex
+ TerrorismTropes
]
* AffectionatePickpocket: A character tries to disguise picking someone's pocket as an affectionate hug.
* AfricanTerrorists: Ruthless militants from Sub-Saharan Africa.
* TheAggressiveDrugDealer: He really doesn't want to hear "no" from potential customers.
* AllBikersAreHellsAngels: Outlaw biker gangs are often styled after the Hells Angels.
* AmbiguousCriminalHistory: A character is implied to have committed a serious crime(s) in the past, but it isn't known exactly what offense(s) they've committed.
* ArmsDealer: Someone who illegally smuggles weapons to sell them to the highest bidder, including criminal gangs and terrorist organizations.
* TheArtfulDodger: Crafty, street-wise homeless child.
* BackAlleyDoctor: A doctor without a medical license operating illegally.
* BalkanBastard: Criminals from Albania and former Yugoslavia.
* BanditClan: A clan or family of criminals who rob people in the rural countryside.
* {{Bandito}}: Mexican bandits.
* BanteringBaddieBuddies: A duo of hired guns who provide bloodshed and witty banter.
* BlackWidow: A woman who marries men and then kills them.
* BlatantBurglar: You can tell this person is a criminal because they wear such stereotypical garb as masks and shirts with black and white stripes.
* TheBluebeard: A man who marries women and then kills them.
* BombThrowingAnarchists: Militant anarchists who want to overthrow the government and all forms of centralized authority through acts of terrorism.
* BoxedCrook: You can die in prison, or you can do us a favor and get out.
* CaptainNemoCopy: An {{Expy}} of [[Literature/TwentyThousandLeaguesUnderTheSea Captain Nemo]].
* CannibalClan: A family who [[ImAHumanitarian eat people]].
* TheCartel: Latin American gangsters and mobsters.
* ClandestineChemist: Someone educated in chemistry decides to use their knowledge for illegal purposes, such as the creation of drugs or poisons.
* ClassyCatBurglar: A skilled, sexy, mysterious female thief, who is just as agile and elegant as a cat.
* CleanupCrew: Criminals who enter a crime scene to hide or destroy evidence.
* CopCriminalFamily: A lawbreaker and law-enforcer are related, often causing conflict between them.
* CopKiller: Someone who murders a police officer.
* TheCracker: A hacker who uses their skills for non-harmless applications.
* CriminalAmnesiac: Amnesiac characters are convinced by the villains that they are on their side.
* CriminalConvention: A social gathering for crooks and outlaws.
* CriminalDoppelganger: An IdenticalStranger who happens to be a [[EvilDoppelganger notorious criminal]]. This may result in their non-criminal lookalike getting in trouble with the law.
* CriminalCravesLegitimacy: A villain wants to live a "normal" or much-improved life and resorts to criminal enterprise to do it.
* CriminalFoundFamily
* CrookedContractor: A sleazy, sketchy contractor who does extremely poor work and dodges accountability whenever something they did catches up with them.
* CrooksAreBetterArmed: When criminals have better weapons than the police do.
* DamnItFeelsGoodToBeAGangster: [[EvilIsCool Organized crime looks very fun]]!
* DangerousDeserter: A soldier who has abandoned their military post and is now a ruthless fugitive.
* {{Delinquents}}: Young hoodlums who commit petty crimes.
* DesertBandits: Robbers who attack travelers in remote desert regions.
* DetectiveMole: Someone investigating a crime turns out to have been secretly complicit in it.
* DiabolicalMastermind
* DigitizedHacker: Hacker who enters cyberspace and operates within it.
* DirtyCop: A police officer who is not above engaging in criminal activity themselves.
* TheDon: A crime boss, the leader of TheMafia or TheSyndicate.
* EcoTerrorist: A radical environmental activist who's willing to resort to illegal or even violent methods to try and save Mother Nature.
* EvilParentsWantGoodKids: Some criminals want their kids to be honest citizens.
* EvilPoacher: Someone who illegally hunts wild animals, especially if they're legally protected species.
* TheFagin: Someone who teaches children how to steal for them.
* FameThroughInfamy: Someone does something heinous just to get on the news and be famous for it.
* TheFamilyThatSlaysTogether: A family of ruthless murderers.
* TheFamilyForTheWholeFamily
* FantasticTerrorists: Terrorists who use methods that only exist in their SpeculativeFiction setting.
* FarEastAsianTerrorists: Ruthless militants from East/Southeast Asia.
* FilmFelons: Crooks pretend to be filmmakers so they can use the cover of making a movie to keep their crimes under wraps.
* FingerSnappingStreetGang: A street gang advances on someone while rhythmically snapping their fingers.
* FirefighterArsonist: Firefighters who can't resist starting the fires themselves.
* FiveFingerDiscount: Thieves who engage in pickpocketing, or stealing things on a person's body through stealth and trickery.
* FootballHooligans: Obsessive football/soccer fans who are prone to bouts of drunken violence against fans of rival teams.
* FriendInTheBlackMarket: A shady merchant who sells illegally obtained products.
* FromCamouflageToCriminal: An ex-military veteran who uses their combat training and experience to enter a life of crime.
* {{Gangbangers}}: Criminal thugs who are members of street gangs, which are smaller and less powerful than major criminal syndicates but no less ruthless or dangerous.
* GangOfHats: A crime group which differentiates themselves from others with a gimmick.
* {{Gayngster}}: A gay gangster.
* GenericEthnicCrimeGang: Criminal gangs tend to be mostly or completely comprised of people from a common ethnic background.
* GentlemanThief: A ManOfWealthAndTaste who steals for sport.
* GetawayDriver: Someone who helps a criminal escape the scene of a crime (for example a robbery) by zooming away in a vehicle.
* GettingHighOnTheirOwnSupply: When a drug dealer is also a drug addict, frequently using their own product whenever they're not selling it.
* GreaserDelinquents: The iconic leather-wearing, cigarette-smoking, slicked-hair-sporting, trouble-making subculture of the 50s and 60s.
* HackedByAPirate: Hackers using pirate imagery as their CallingCard.
* TheHighwayman
* HillbillyMoonshiner: Someone who illegally produces alcohol despite laws which ban or restrict this activity.
* HitmanWithAHeart
* HolyHitman: A ProfessionalKiller that makes references to the Good Book.
* HonestJohnsDealership: Illegitimate salesmen who trick their customers into buying shoddy merchandise.
* HonorAmongThieves: When criminals demonstrate professional courtesy and respect for their colleagues.
* HostileHitchhiker: When someone allows a suspicious stranger to take a ride in their car, only for that stranger to turn out to be some sort of armed robber, escaped convict, SerialKiller, or another dangerous criminal.
* HumanTraffickers: Criminals who illegally transport live people, often moving [[TheIllegal undocumented migrants]] across international borders, and sometimes [[MadeASlave selling them into slavery]].
* HuntingTheRogue: For rogue agent deserters from organizations they served.
* ImpersonatingAnOfficer: When a criminal disguises themselves as a cop as a cover for their actions.
* IndispensableScoundrel: A shady character who is kept around because their skills and body of knowledge are too invaluable to lose by killing or imprisoning them.
* InvasionOfTheBabySnatchers: Non-humans kidnapping babies.
* IrishExplosivesExpert: A (Northern) Irish terrorist who knows how to make and use bombs. Oftentimes a veteran of UsefulNotes/TheTroubles.
* TheIrishMob: Irish gangsters and mobsters.
* JackTheRipoff: A murderer who takes inspiration from the M.O. of a famous serial killer.
* JapaneseDelinquents: Japanese petty criminals that are not exactly like the {{Yakuza}}.
* JustAGangster: [[Film/TheGodfather When life thinks to get them out]], this person [[RussianReversal pulls themselves back in]].
* JustLikeRobinHood: A thief who steals from the rich and gives to the poor.
* JustifiedCriminal
* KarmicThief: A person who only steals from bad people.
* KillerCop: A murderous police officer.
* KingOfThieves: The leader of a big gang of muggers, robbers, and pickpockets.
* KosherNostra: Jewish gangsters and mobsters.
* LawmanGoneBad: A criminal who formerly worked for the police.
* LoanShark: If you borrow money from this thug, you better pay back your debt to him or else.
* LondonGangster: British gangsters and mobsters.
* LovableRogue: They break the law at least somewhat for their own gain, but are charming and affable enough for the audience to root for them.
* LowerClassLout: Working-class and poor people being depicted as this.
* MadBomber: Someone who's planting and detonating a lot of explosives in public places.
* TheMafia: Italian gangsters and mobsters.
* TheMafiya: Russian gangsters and mobsters.
* MasterForger
* MiddleEasternTerrorists: Ruthless militants from West Asia or North Africa.
* MinorWithFakeID: A teenager gets a fake ID to pretend to be older.
* TheMobBossIsScarier: The head honcho of the gang is feared and respected for a good reason.
* TheMostWanted: The top list of fugitive criminals wanted by the law.
* MurderersAreRapists: A criminal who rapes their victim before killing them.
* NaughtyNarcs: A narcotics officer who accepts bribes from drug dealers.
* NeighbourhoodFriendlyGangsters: Local criminals try to protect their neighbors and communities from other bad guys.
* NoHonorAmongThieves: Though this doesn't always work. Many criminals tend to [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder be disloyal to one another]].
* NotoriousParent: Someone's father or mother who turns out to be an infamous fugitive criminal.
* TheOldConvict: An elderly prison inmate who's been serving a very long sentence.
* {{Outlaw}}: A fugitive criminal, especially a bandit living in a [[TheWildWest lawless frontier region]].
* OutlawCouple: A duo of criminals who are married or in love with each other.
* PedophilePriest: A priest who sexually abuses children.
* ThePeepingTom: People who get their sick kicks by spying on others.
* PercussivePickpocket: A thief pickpockets something off of someone, disguising the act as an accidental bump on the street.
* PetRat: Ill-repute crook secretly working for a good-repute boss.
* PhantomThief: A thief archetype known for being elusive.
* {{Pirate}}: Criminals who sail around in water to rob boats and ships passing by.
* PirateGirl: A female pirate.
* PlayfulHacker: Hacks computers for fun.
* PoeticSerialKiller: A SerialKiller that operates on DeathByIrony.
* PredatoryProstitute: A sex worker who is also a criminal in other ways.
* ProfessionalKiller: Also known as contract killers, hitmen, or assassins. These people commit murder in exchange for monetary payment.
* ProtectionRacket: An extortion scheme where gangsters force business owners to pay them if they don't want to risk damage to their livelihoods.
* {{Pyromaniac}}: If someone is so obsessed with fire that it leads to them committing arson.
* TheQuincyPunk: A negatively stereotyped, even violent 1970s / '80s punk character.
* TheQueenpin: A female mob boss.
* RabidCop: A sadistic police officer who really enjoys [[PoliceBrutality beating the crap out of suspects]].
* RageAgainstTheLegalSystem: Convicted and/or incarcerated criminal seeks revenge against authorities for his punishment.
* RecruitingTheCriminal
* ReformedCriminal: They used to be a criminal, but are now on the straight and narrow path.
* RetiredOutlaw
* RightWingMilitiaFanatic: Far-right-wing American terrorists who really distrust the US federal government.
* RobinHoodlum: A copy of Robin Hood that's a villain or a {{Jerkass}}.
* RogueAgent
* RogueSoldier
* RoguishPoacher: Someone who hunts animals illegally, but does so more for sustenance rather than greed or thrills.
* RoguishRomani: Romani gangsters and mobsters.
* RuralGangsters
* TheRustler: A thief who specializes in stealing cattle, horses, or other livestock.
* RuthlessForeignGangsters: Immigrant criminals who are more dangerous than the native-born criminals.
* RuthlessModernPirates: Unromanticized pirates from the present day.
* SatisfiedStreetRat: An orphaned kid who has turned living on the street to their advantage.
* SerialKillerKiller: A serial killer who preys on other murderers.
* ScoundrelCode: Even career criminals are sometimes expected to follow a code of behavioral conduct, for [[EvenEvilHasStandards moral]] or [[PragmaticVillainy practical]] reasons.
* SchlubbyScummySecurityGuard: Frequently criminals.
* SerialKiller: A murderer who gradually kills multiple individual victims, one after another.
* SerialRapist: A rapist who sexually assaults a series of individual victims.
* ShadyLadyOfTheNight: A prostitute who is hired to be an informant, a hitman, or to do criminal activites other than sex.
* ShadyScalper: People who sell items of limited availability (e.g. tickets, toys) but jack up the prices. What they do is sometimes not actually ''illegal''... but still pretty crummy.
* SiblingsInCrime: A group consisting of brothers or sisters who commit crimes together.
* SkyPirate: Pirates in the air.
* SouthAsianTerrorists: Ruthless militants from South Asia.
* SpacePirates: {{Pirate}}s InSpace
* SpreeKiller: A mass-murderer who kills multiple people during a quick rampage.
* StealingFromTheTill: Embezzlement.
* StupidCrooks: Criminals who are too incompetent and moronic to commit a successful crime.
* SubmarinePirates: Pirates ''under'' the sea.
* SuperMobBoss: A gang leader or mob boss who's tough enough to be considered a {{supervillain}}.
* SympatheticMurderer
* TheSyndicate: A big and powerful criminal organization.
* TattooedCrook: Criminals with tattoos, usually to display gang affiliation.
* TerminallyIllCriminal: A character commits a crime or engages in regular criminal activity after learning (or while so) they have a fatal disease.
* TerroristsWithoutACause: These criminals commit quasi-terrorist acts with a thin veneer of political ideology.
* TheatrePhantom: A Phantom of the Opera rip-off.
* ThemeSerialKiller
* ThievesCant: Code-words used by professional criminals to discreetly discuss their illegal affairs.
* ThievesGuild: When all illegal activity is strictly controlled and regulated by a criminal organization.
* ThoseWackyNazis: Neo-Nazis are often [[WhiteGangBangers members of prison/street gangs]], or terrorists who commit violent crimes for ideological reasons.
* TotalitarianGangsterism: Gang-controlled neighborhoods are very unpleasant for law-abiding citizens who live in them.
* TheTriadsAndTheTongs: Chinese gangsters and mobsters.
* VenturousSmuggler: An adventurous scoundrel who transports illegal cargo for a living.
* VigilanteMan: A person who isn't a cop decides to pursue and fight criminals, which often involves using illegal methods to do so.
* WesternTerrorists: Ruthless militants from the Americas, Europe, or Oceania.
* WhiteCollarCrime: Not all criminals are involved with drugs, sex, or violence. White-collar criminals use fraud, scams, and other dishonest tactics to steal money from people.
* WhiteGangBangers: Criminal thugs of non-Hispanic white European descent, as opposed to gangsters of other ethnicities.
* {{Yakuza}}: Japanese gangsters and mobsters.
* TheYardies: Jamaican gangsters and mobsters.
[[/index]]
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