perp

¹

[purp]

noun

Police Slang.

1. the perpetrator of a crime.

perp.

²

abbreviation

1. perpendicular.

perp

/ pɜːp /

noun

1. informal,  a person who has committed a crime

Word History and Origins

Origin of perp¹

C20: from _perpetrate

Example Sentences

An FBI agent has reportedly been suspended because they refused to participate in a "perp walk" of the bureau's former director James Comey, US media reports.

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During a perp walk, law enforcement publicly escort a person accused of a crime as they are transported outside a police station or courthouse, usually in view of media cameras.

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Oswald was killed two days later by Dallas nightclub owner Jack Ruby during a perp walk broadcast on live television.

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Ali pointed to the Mangione’s perp walk, where he was surrounded by heavily armed law enforcement as well as Mayor Eric Adams.

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He said it bore similarities to the perp walk of Timothy McVeigh, the Oklahoma City bomber, who killed 168 people in 1995.

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