| (1) |
Whenever the National Director has reason to suspect that there may be in any building, receptacle or place, or in the possession, custody or control of any person any property which— |
| (a) |
may have been used in the commission, or for the purpose of or in connection with the commission, of an offence under Chapter 2; |
| (b) |
may have facilitated the commission of such an offence, or enabled any person or entity to commit such an offence, or provided financial or economic support to a person or entity in the commission of such an offence; or |
| (c) |
may be the proceeds of such an offence, |
he or she may, prior to the institution of any asset forfeiture or criminal proceedings under written authority, direct that a particular Director of Public Prosecutions or a Special Director of Public Prosecutions, shall have the power to institute an investigation in terms of the provisions of Chapter 5 of the National Prosecuting Authority Act, 1998 (Act No. 32 of 1998), relating to such property.
| (2) |
For purposes of subsection (l), a reference in the said Chapter 5 to— |
| (a) |
the "head of the Directorate of Special Operations" or an "Investigating Director" shall be construed as a reference to a Director of Public Prosecutions or a Special Director of Public Prosecutions, as the case may be: Provided that for purposes of section 28(2)(a) of the said Act, a Director of Public Prosecutions or Special Director of Public Prosecutions, may only designate a Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions; and |
| (b) |
a "special investigator" shall be construed as to include a police official. |
| (3) |
If property seized under any power exercised under subsection (1) consists of cash or funds standing to the credit of a bank account, the Director of Public Prosecutions or a Special Director of Public Prosecutions who has instituted the investigation under that subsection shall cause the cash or funds to be paid into a banking account which shall be opened with any bank as defined in section 1 of the Banks Act, 1990 (Act No. 94 of 1990), and the Director of Public Prosecutions or a Special Director of Public Prosecutions shall forthwith report to the Financial Intelligence Centre the fact of the seizure of the cash or funds and the opening of the account. |
Statistics Act, 1999
