PART VIII
Search Warrants (s 21)

[Ch0803s21]21.     Powers of search, etc.

            (1) Where a person has been convicted of a serious offence, or there are reasonable grounds for suspecting that a person has committed a serious offence, and there are reasonable grounds for suspecting that there is on any land, or upon any premises, any document such as is described in section 18(1) in relation to the offence, the Director of Public Prosecutions may apply to a magistrate or a judge of the High Court for a search warrant in respect of that land or those premises.

            (2) A police officer of or above the rank of Inspector may, under the authority of a search warrant issued under subsection (1), enter upon any land or upon or into any premises specified in the warrant, to search for and seize any document which he believes on reasonable grounds to be a document such as is described in section 18(1).

            (3) A magistrate or judge shall not issue a search warrant under this section unless he is satisfied that-

     (a)     the document involved cannot be identified or described with sufficient particularity for the purpose of obtaining a production order in respect of it;

     (b)     a production order has been given in respect of the document and has not been complied with;

     (c)     a production order in respect of the document would be unlikely to be effective because there are reasonable grounds to suspect that it would not be complied with; or

     (d)     the investigation for the purposes of which the search warrant is sought might be seriously prejudiced if immediate access to the document is not obtained without prior notice to any person.

            (4) If, in the course of a search authorized under this section, a document or any other thing is found that the person conducting the search believes on reasonable grounds to be a document such as is referred to in section 17(1), though not of a kind specified in the warrant, or such as will afford evidence, relating to the serious offence in respect of which the warrant was issued, or to any other serious offence, and it is believed on reasonable grounds that it is necessary to seize that document or thing immediately to prevent its concealment, loss or destruction, the warrant shall be deemed to authorize such seizure.