PART 13 | SEARCH, SEIZURE AND ARREST |
101.—(1) Where it appears to any Magistrate, or any senior officer of customs not below the rank of Assistant Director‑General of Customs, upon information and after any inquiry which he or she may think necessary, that there is reasonable cause to believe that in any dwelling house, shop or other building or place, there are concealed or deposited any —| (a) | dutiable or uncustomed goods; | | (b) | goods liable to forfeiture under this Act; | | (c) | goods as to which any offence under this Act has been committed; or | | (d) | books, records, documents or other articles, directly or indirectly, relating to any transaction or dealing in any of the goods mentioned in this subsection, |
| the Magistrate or the senior officer of customs may issue a warrant authorising any officer of customs, named therein, by day or by night and with or without assistance — |
| (e) | to enter the dwelling house, shop or other building or place and there to search for and seize any goods reasonably suspected of being dutiable or uncustomed goods, or goods liable to forfeiture under this Act, or goods as to which any offence under this Act is suspected to have been committed, or any books, records, documents or other articles which may reasonably be believed to be, directly or indirectly, relating to any transaction or dealing in any of the goods mentioned in this subsection; | | (f) | to arrest any person or persons being in such dwelling house, shop, building or place, in whose possession the goods, books, records, documents or other articles may be found, or whom the officer may reasonably suspect to have concealed or deposited the goods, books, records, documents or other articles; and | | (g) | to make copies of and take any reasonable steps to preserve any books, records, documents or other articles mentioned in sub-paragraph (e). |
(2) Such officer may if it is necessary to do so —| (a) | break open any outer or inner door of the dwelling house, shop or other building or place and enter therein; | | (b) | forcibly enter that place and every part thereof; | | (c) | remove by force any obstruction to such entry, search, seizure and removal as that officer is empowered to effect; and | | (d) | detain every person found in that place until that place has been searched. |
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| Power of Magistrate, etc., to enter and search |
| 102. A Magistrate or senior officer of customs not below the rank of Assistant Director‑General of Customs may himself or herself do what he or she may under section 101 empower an officer of customs to do whenever the Magistrate or senior officer of customs is competent to issue a warrant under that section. |
| When search may be made without warrant |
103. Where it appears to any senior officer of customs that there is reasonable cause to believe that in any dwelling house, shop or other building or place there are concealed or deposited any —| (a) | dutiable or uncustomed goods; | | (b) | goods liable to forfeiture under this Act; | | (c) | goods as to which any offence under this Act has been committed; or | | (d) | books, records, documents or other articles, directly or indirectly, relating to any transaction or dealing in any of the goods mentioned in this subsection, |
| and if the officer has reasonable grounds for believing that by reason of the delay in obtaining a search warrant the goods, books, records, documents or other articles are likely to be removed, the officer may exercise in, upon and in respect of that dwelling house, shop or other building or place all the powers mentioned in section 101 as if the officer were authorised to do so by a warrant issued under that section. |
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| Power to have access to, inspect and check operation of computer and other apparatus |
103A. In connection with the exercise of the powers in section 102 or 103, any Magistrate or any senior officer of customs, as the case may be —| (a) | is entitled at any time to have access to, and inspect and check the operation of, any computer and any associated device, apparatus or material which is or has been in use in connection with any data or document to which section 102 or 103 applies; and | | (b) | may require —| (i) | the person by whom or on whose behalf the computer is or has been so used; or | | (ii) | any person having charge of, or otherwise concerned with the operation of, the computer, device, apparatus or material, |
| to provide the Magistrate or the senior officer of customs with such reasonable assistance as he or she may require for the purposes of paragraph (a). |
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| Power to search vessels and aircraft |
104.—(1) A proper officer of customs may —| (a) | go on board any vessel or aircraft in the Port of Singapore or in any customs airport or place or within the territorial waters of Singapore and remain on board as long as the vessel or aircraft remains in Singapore; | | (b) | require the master of the vessel or the captain of the aircraft to give such information relating to the vessel or aircraft, cargo, stores, crew, passengers or voyage as the officer may consider necessary; | | (c) | rummage and search all parts of the vessel or aircraft for uncustomed goods; | | (d) | examine all goods on board and all goods then being loaded or unloaded; | | (e) | demand all documents which ought to be on board the vessel or aircraft; | | (f) | require all or any such documents to be brought to the officer for inspection; and | | (g) | if necessary, retain any such documents brought to the officer for inspection. |
| (2) The master of any vessel and the captain of any aircraft refusing to allow the proper officer of customs to board or search the vessel or aircraft, or refusing to give such information or to produce such documents on demand shall be guilty of an offence. |
| (3) If any place, box or chest on board the vessel or aircraft is locked and the key withheld, the proper officer of customs may open any such place, box or chest. |
| (4) If any goods of a class dutiable on import are found concealed on board any vessel or aircraft, they are deemed to be uncustomed goods. |
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| Senior officer of customs to exercise powers of search |
105.—(1) Every senior officer of customs is entitled to exercise in and upon and in respect of any vessel, aircraft, islet, landing place, wharf, free trade zone or railway all the powers mentioned in section 101 in as full and ample a manner as if the officer were authorised to do so by a warrant issued under that section.| (2) Despite anything in any other written law, every senior officer of customs, or any officer of customs deputed by him or her for the purpose, in exercise of his or her powers under subsection (1) has free access to the vessel, aircraft or any of the places specified in that subsection. |
| (3) In this section, “railway” has the meaning given by the Railways Act 1905. |
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| Officers of customs may stop and search conveyances |
106.—(1) Any officer of customs may stop and examine any vehicle for the purpose of ascertaining whether any dutiable or uncustomed goods are contained therein.(2) The person in control or in charge of the vehicle must, if required to do so by the officer of customs —| (a) | stop the vehicle and allow the officer to examine it or move his or her vehicle to another place for examination; and | | (b) | not proceed until permission to do so has been given by the officer. |
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(3) The person in control or in charge of any vehicle stopped for examination under subsection (1) must, on request by the proper officer of customs —| (a) | open all parts of the vehicle for examination by the officer; and | | (b) | take all measures necessary to enable any examination that the officer considers necessary to be made. |
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107.—(1) Despite any other written law, any senior officer of customs may, if the officer considers it necessary to do so for the prevention of smuggling of dutiable goods or detection of revenue evasion —| (a) | erect or place barriers in or across any public road or street or in any public place in such manner as the officer may think fit; and | | (b) | take all reasonable steps to prevent any vehicle from being driven or ridden past any such barrier mentioned in paragraph (a). |
| (2) Any driver or rider of any vehicle who fails to comply with the signal of an officer of customs requiring the person to stop his or her vehicle before reaching any barrier mentioned in subsection (1) shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $2,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or to both. |
| (3) Any officer of customs may, without warrant, arrest any driver or rider mentioned in subsection (2) unless the driver or rider gives his or her name, identity card number and a place of address within Singapore and if the officer of customs has reason to believe that the name and address so given by the driver or rider is false, the officer may exercise such power of arrest and detention or seizure of the vehicle. |
| (4) No officer of customs shall be liable for any loss or damage resulting to any vehicle or for any injury to the driver or rider or any other occupant of the vehicle or pillion rider as a result of any barrier erected by any officer under subsection (1). |
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| Power to open packages and examine goods |
108. Any proper officer of customs may —| (a) | examine any goods in the course of being imported or exported or intended to be imported or exported; | | (b) | for the purposes of such examination direct the goods to be brought to a customs office or a customs station; and | | (c) | open any package or receptacle. |
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| Search of persons arriving in Singapore |
109.—(1) Subject to this section, any person landing, or being about to land, or having recently landed, from any vessel or aircraft, or leaving any vessel or aircraft in the territorial waters of Singapore, whether for the purpose of landing or otherwise, or entering or having recently entered Singapore by road or rail must, on demand by any proper officer of customs —| (a) | permit his or her person, goods and baggage to be searched by the officer; or | | (b) | together with the goods and baggage accompany the officer to a customs office or customs station or police station and there permit his or her person, goods and baggage to be searched by an officer of customs. |
| (2) Any person who requests that his or her person be searched in the presence of a senior officer of customs must not be searched except in the presence of and under the supervision of that officer, but the person may be detained until the arrival of that officer, or taken to any customs office or customs station or police station where that officer may be found. |
| (3) The goods and baggage of any person who requests to be present when they are searched and so presents himself or herself within a reasonable time must not be searched except in his or her presence. |
| (4) A woman must not be searched except by a woman. |
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| Seizure of goods the subject of an offence |
110.—(1) All goods in respect of which there has been, or there is reasonable cause to suspect that there has been, committed any offence under this Act or any breach of the provisions of this Act or of any restriction or condition subject to or upon which any licence or permit has been granted, together with any receptacle, package, vehicle, vessel not exceeding 200 tons net registered tonnage, or aircraft, in which the same may have been found or which has been used in connection with the offence or breach, and any books or documents which may reasonably be believed to have a bearing on the case may be seized by any officer of customs in any place either on land or in the territorial waters of Singapore.| (2) All such goods and such receptacles, packages, vehicles, vessels or aircraft must, as soon as practicable, be delivered into the care of a proper officer of customs whose duty it is to receive the same. |
| (3) Whenever any goods, vehicles, vessels or aircraft are seized under this Act, the seizing officer must immediately give written notice of the seizure and the grounds thereof to the owner of the goods, vehicles, vessels or aircraft, if known, either by delivering the notice to the owner personally or by post at the owner’s place of abode, if known. |
| (4) The notice mentioned in subsection (3) is not required to be given where the seizure is made on the person, or in the presence of the offender or the owner or the owner’s agent, or in the case of a vessel or an aircraft, in the presence of the master or pilot, as the case may be. |
(5) The provisions of this section relating to —| (a) | the seizure of goods apply to all the contents of any package or receptacle in which the same are found and to any article used to conceal the same; | | (b) | the seizure of any vessel or aircraft apply also to the tackle, equipment and furnishings of the vessel or aircraft; and | | (c) | the seizure of conveyances apply to all equipment thereof and to any animal by which the same is drawn. |
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| (6) Any goods of a perishable nature or any animal or bird seized under this section may be sold immediately and the proceeds of sale held to abide the result of any prosecution or claim. |
| (7) Any goods which are of a dangerous character or which cannot be removed without undue expense may be destroyed on the instructions of a senior officer of customs. |
| (8) A senior officer of customs may release any goods seized under this section to the importer or owner thereof subject to such conditions and on such security as that officer may determine. |
| (9) The security required under subsection (8) may be by cash deposit or bank guarantee or both. |
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| Release of vehicle, vessel or aircraft under bond |
| 111. When any vehicle, vessel or aircraft has been seized under this Act, a senior officer of customs may temporarily return the vehicle, vessel or aircraft to the owner of the same on security being furnished to the satisfaction of the officer that the vehicle, vessel or aircraft will be surrendered to the officer on demand. |
112.—(1) Any officer of customs may arrest without warrant —| (a) | any person found committing or attempting to commit, or employing or aiding any person to commit, or abetting the commission of, an offence under this Act; | | (b) | any person whom the officer may reasonably suspect to have in the person’s possession any dutiable or uncustomed goods or any goods liable to seizure under this Act; or | | (c) | any person against whom a reasonable suspicion exists that the person has been guilty of an offence under this Act, |
| and may search or cause to be searched, any person so arrested. |
| (2) A woman must not be searched except by a woman. |
| (3) An officer of customs making an arrest without warrant must, without unnecessary delay and subject to this section as to bail or previous release, take or send the person arrested before a Magistrate’s Court. |
| (4) An officer of customs must not detain in custody a person arrested without a warrant for a longer period than under the circumstances of the case is reasonable. |
| (5) The period must not exceed 48 hours exclusive of the time necessary for the journey from the place of arrest to the Magistrate’s Court. |
| (6) A person who has been arrested by an officer of customs must not be released except on his or her own bond or on bail or under the special written order of a Magistrate or a senior officer of customs. |
| (7) If any person liable to arrest under this Act is not arrested at the time of committing the offence for which the person is so liable, or after arrest makes his or her escape, the person may, at any time afterwards, be arrested and be dealt with as if the person had been arrested at the time of committing the offence. |
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