suffix
perpetrator of a crime; crime
Suffix used in legal and news contexts to form nouns denoting a type of crime or its perpetrator. Often appears in compounds like 殺人犯 (murderer) or 窃盗犯 (theft).
彼は殺人犯として逮捕された。
He was arrested as a murder suspect.
窃盗犯の手口が巧妙化している。
The methods of theft are becoming more sophisticated.
犯罪 is a general noun meaning 'crime', while 犯 is a suffix that specifies the type of crime or perpetrator.
犯人 is a common word for 'criminal' or 'culprit', whereas 犯 is a bound suffix used in compounds.
The kanji 犯 means 'crime' or 'violation'. As a suffix, it derives from its use in Chinese compounds to denote a type of crime or offender.