Commonwealth Consolidated Regulations Commonwealth Consolidated Regulations(1) In this regulation:
prescribed officer means:
(a) a member, special member, protective service officer or special protective service officer of the Australian Federal Police; or
(b) a member of the police force of a State or Territory.
(2) A prescribed officer, with such assistance as the officer reasonably believes is necessary and with such force as is necessary and reasonable, may remove a prescribed object described in a certificate from prescribed land or premises described in the certificate.
(3) A prescribed officer must not remove a prescribed object from the prescribed land or premises before giving a reasonable opportunity to a person:
(a) who is apparently in control of the object; or
(b) who placed the object on the land or premises; or
(c) who is apparently a representative of a person referred to in paragraph (a) or (b);
to remove the object from the land or premises.
(4) Where a prescribed officer removes a prescribed object from the prescribed land or premises, the officer may:
(a) give the object to a person who was apparently in control of the object, or is a person referred to in paragraph (3) (b) or (c); or
(b) leave the object on other land or premises; or
(c) retain the object for up to 7 days.
(4A) Before leaving a prescribed object on land or premises referred to in paragraph (4) (b), a prescribed officer must give any of the persons referred to in paragraph (3) (a), (b) or (c) at least 24 hours' notice of the location of the land or premises.
(5) Where an object is retained under paragraph (4) (c) and has not been returned to a person referred to in paragraph 3 (a), (b) or (c), at the end of the 7 days, the prescribed officer must take reasonable steps to return the prescribed object to a person referred to in paragraph (3) (a), (b) or (c) or (if that person is not entitled to possess it) the owner, unless:
(a) proceedings in respect of which the object may afford evidence (including an appeal to a court in relation to those proceedings) were begun before the end of the 7 days and have not been completed; or
(b) the officer is otherwise authorised by a law, or an order of a court, of the Commonwealth or of a State or Territory to retain, destroy or dispose of the object.