South Australian Current Regulations

TOBACCO AND E-CIGARETTE PRODUCTS REGULATIONS 2019 - REG 25

25—Seized property and forfeiture

        (1)         For the purposes of section 69 of the Act, any material or thing seized by an authorised officer under the Act ("seized property") must be dealt with in accordance with this Part.

        (2)         Subject to this regulation, seized property must be held pending proceedings for an offence against the Act relating to the property.

        (3)         If seized property—

            (a)         is a tobacco product, e-cigarette product or a prohibited product; or

            (b)         is, in the opinion of the Minister, likely to constitute a danger if stored pending proceedings for an offence against the Act relating to the property,

the Minister may direct that the property be destroyed, whether or not a person has been, or is to be, charged with an offence in relation to it.

        (4)         Property referred to in subregulation (3) may be destroyed at the place at which it was seized or at any other suitable place.

        (5)         If a charge is laid, or is to be laid, for an offence in relation to property referred to in subregulation (3)(a), a representative sample of the property must be taken in accordance with regulation 26 and kept for evidentiary purposes.

        (6)         If a charge is laid, or is to be laid, for an offence in relation to property referred to in subregulation (3)(b), a sample of the property that provides a true representation of the nature of the property must be taken and kept for evidentiary purposes.

        (7)         If a person is convicted of an offence in relation to property destroyed in accordance with subregulation (3), the court may order the convicted person to pay the reasonable costs of storage and destruction of the property to the Minister (including, without limitation, the costs of the Minister, or a person acting at the direction of the Minister, collecting, transporting and dismantling the property as may reasonably be required for the purposes of destroying the property).

        (8)         If the Magistrates Court on application by the Minister, or any court hearing proceedings under the Act, finds that seized property—

            (a)         was the subject of an offence against the Act; or

            (b)         consists of material or a thing used or intended for use for, or in connection with, an offence against the Act,

the court may make 1 or both of the following orders:

            (c)         an order forfeiting the property to the Crown;

            (d)         an order requiring the person from whom the property was seized to pay the reasonable costs incurred by the Minister in storing or otherwise dealing with the property.

        (9)         The Minister may, in relation to seized property—

            (a)         if seized property is the subject of an order for forfeiture under this regulation—sell, destroy or otherwise dispose of the property as the Minister thinks fit; or

            (b)         in any other case—return the seized property to the person from whom it was seized.

        (10)         No right of compensation arises out of any action taken by the Minister or an authorised officer under this regulation.