There was almost no crime in the Inca Empire. The laws were much too harsh to take the risk. For example, if you insulted the king, didn't worship the gods, or were lazy you could be thrown over a cliff. Sometimes you got a second chance and sometimes you did not. Those caught stealing or cheating had their hands or feet cut off or their eyes gouged out. The death penalty was carried out in other ways. One might be stoned to death which is when people surrounded a person and threw large rocks or stones at them until they died. They even tied criminals to a tree high in the mountains and left them to freeze to death or be eaten alive by wild animals.
If a person lived through punishment and became a "criminal" it wasn't pretty either. They belonged to the government and had to work for them for the rest of their life. They gave criminals rotten food and the dirtiest, smelliest clothes. Conditions were pretty horrible. They were let out of "jail" and taken to the city gates each day. They were also given a "begging bowl." As people passed by, the criminals announced their crimes. If the story was interesting people would toss food or small gifts into the bowl which they may or may not get to keep. This way each criminal could prove how many people listened to their story each day. And people passing by had a daily reminder of what happened if you broke the law. Why not run away? Common people were not allowed on the roads which were guarded by the military. Anyone on the roads without permission was immediately killed.