According to the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation, the preliminary proceedings include: receipt of a report of a criminal offense, its verification and decisionmaking on initiation or refusal to initiate criminal proceedings; preliminary investigation of a criminal offense in the form of investigative proceedings or procedure of the competent authority for data collection; completion of the preliminary investigation and actions of the prosecutor in the case submitted to him with the indictment, indictment act or indictment decision. Consideration of the preliminary proceedings as an independent type of activity, separated from the judicial proceedings, allows that the scientific public is asked the question of the need not only for normative determination of goals and tasks specific to each part of the criminal process, but also for the formulation of special groups of principles that determine the essence of the criminal procedural activity in the preliminary, and especially in the judicial proceedings. The preliminary investigation represents the phase of the criminal proceedings that follows the initiation of the criminal proceedings. The authorities of the preliminary investigation are obliged to determine the circumstances of the commission of the criminal offense: the identity of the accused; the degree of his guilt; the motive of the criminal offense; the amount of damage caused; the causes and conditions that contributed to the commission of the criminal offense and other. The topicality of this investigation arises from the need for quick and efficient resolution of criminal offenses, as well as the protection of the rights and freedoms of citizens.
Key words: preliminary proceedings, initiation of criminal proceedings, criminal proceedings, preliminary investigation, criminal procedural activity.