L.R.O. 1/2012
LAWS OF GUYANA
HIJACKING AND PIRACY ACT
CHAPTER 10:08
Act
8 of 2008
Current Authorised Pages
Pages
(inclusive)
Authorised
by L.R.O.
1 – 11 ... 1/2012
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Note
on
Subsidiary Legislation
This Chapter contains no subsidiary legislation.
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CHAPTER 10:08
ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS
SECTION
1. Short title.
2. Interpretation.
3. Punishment for armed robbery.
4. Punishment for hijacking.
5. Piracy defined.
6. Punishment for piracy.
7. Punishment for armed robbery, piracy or hijacking when murder is
involved.
8. Punishment of accessories.
9. Forfeiture of vessel, etc.
10. Restraint order in respect of certain properties.
11. Civil forfeiture order.
12. Burden of proof.
13. Bail not to be granted in certain cases.
14. Jurisdiction.
15. Act not in derogation.
16. Power to make regulations.
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8 of 2008 An Act to make special provisions for punishment for the
offences of armed robbery hijacking and piracy and for
matters connected therewith.
[31ST JULY, 2008]
Short title.
Interpretation.
1. This act may be cited as the Hijacking and Piracy
Act.
2. In this Act—
“armed robbery” means an act of robbery, not amounting to
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Punishment for
armed robbery.

Punishment for
hijacking.
Piracy defined.
piracy, committed with any unlawful act of violence
or detention or any act of depredation using firearms
or other dangerous or offensive weapons and directed
against a vessel or against any person or property on
board a vessel within the rivers, internal waters or
territorial sea of Guyana;
“hijacking”, in relation to a vessel, means taking away the
vessel unlawfully by force, coercion or threat of
imminent danger or by any other form of intimidation
or unlawfully seizing or exercising or attempting to
take over the control of the vessel;
“Minister” means the Minister of Home Affairs;
“pirate vessel” means a vessel intended to be used by persons
in its dominant control for the purpose of committing
one of the acts referred to in section 5;
“vessel” means any steamship, ship, sloop, boat or other
floating craft whether used for fishing or not and
includes any description of aircraft.
3. Every person who commits armed robbery commits
an offence and is liable on conviction on indictment to
imprisonment for life together with a fine of one million
dollars.
4. Every person who hijacks a vessel commits an
offence and is liable on conviction on indictment to
imprisonment for life together with a fine of one million
dollars.
5. Piracy consists of any of the following acts—
(a) any illegal act of violence or detention
or any act of depredation committed
for private ends by any person on
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Punishment for
piracy.


Punishment for
armed robbery,
piracy or
hijacking when
murder is
involved.
Punishment of
accessories.
board including the crew or the
passengers of a private vessel and
directed—
(i) on the rivers, internal waters or
the territorial sea of Guyana
against another vessel, or
against persons or property on
board such vessel;
(ii) on the high seas against a
vessel or persons or property in
a place outside the jurisdiction
of Guyana;
(b) any act of voluntary participation in
the operation of a vessel with
knowledge of facts making it a pirate
vessel;
(c) any act of inciting or of intentionally
facilitating an act described in
paragraph (a) or (b).
6. Every person who commits any of the acts of piracy
described in section 5 commits an offence and is liable on
conviction on indictment to imprisonment for life together
with a fine of not less than two hundred thousand dollars nor
more than one million dollars.
7. Every person who murders a person on board a
vessel that is under attack while committing an offence of
armed robbery, piracy or hijacking is liable on conviction on
indictment to suffer death.
8. In the case of every indictable offence punishable
under this Act every principal in the second degree and every
accessory before the fact is punishable in the same manner as
the principal in the first degree is by this Act punishable, and
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Forfeiture of
vessel, etc.


Restraint order
in respect of
certain
properties.

every accessory after the fact to any such offence punishable
under this Act is liable on conviction on indictment to
imprisonment for ten years together with a fine of three
hundred thousand dollars.
9. Any building owned by an accused and used for
the commission of any offence under this Act and any vessel,
machinery, accessories, weapons and any other thing used or
intended to be used in the commission of the offence and
together with all things found in the vessel shall on conviction
on indictment be forfeited to the State.
10. (1) Where, on an application made to the Court
trying an offence under this Act by the Director of Public
Prosecutions that—
(a) the accused person is in possession or
control of—
(i) a specified property that
constitutes, directly or
indirectly; the proceeds of the
alleged crime; or
(ii) a specified property that was
acquired by the accused, in
whole or in part, with or in
connection with the property
that, directly or indirectly
constitutes the proceeds of the
alleged crime; and
(b) the value of the property or, as the
case may be, the total value of the
property referred to in paragraph (a)
is not less than two million dollars,
the Court shall make a restraint order prohibiting the accused
or any other person from disposing of or otherwise dealing
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Civil forfeiture
order.
with the whole or, if appropriate, a specified part of the
property or diminishing its value, unless it is shown to the
satisfaction of the Court, on evidence tendered by the accused
or any other person claiming that—
(i) the particular property does not
constitute, directly or indirectly
the proceeds of the alleged
crime and was not acquired, in
whole or in part, with or in
connection with the property
that, directly or indirectly,
constitutes the proceeds of the
alleged crime, or
(ii) the value of all the property to
which the order would relate is
less than two million dollars.
(c) The Court shall not make an order
under subsection (1) if it is satisfied
that there would be a serious risk of
injustice or irreparable loss to anyone
if the order is made.
11. (1) Subject to subsection (2), the Court, on
application made to it by the Director of Public Prosecutions,
may make a civil forfeiture order directing that the whole or,
if appropriate, a specified part of the property of the person
convicted under this Act be transferred, subject to such terms
and conditions as the Court may specify, to a receiver or to
another person as the Court may determine.
(2) Subject to subsections (6) and (8), the Court
shall not make a civil forfeiture order in relation to any
property the subject of an application under subsection (1)
unless it is shown to its satisfaction that the particular
property constitutes, directly or indirectly, proceeds of the
crime or was acquired, in whole or in part, with or in
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connection with property that, directly or indirectly,
constitutes the proceeds of the crime.
(3) The Director of Public Prosecutions shall give
notice to the person convicted under this Act and to such
other person if any as the Court may direct of an application
made by the Director of Public Prosecutions under this
section.
(4) A civil forfeiture order shall operate to deprive
any person convicted under this Act of his rights if any in or
to the property to which it relates and, upon making of the
order, the property shall stand transferred to the receiver
appointed by the Court or to the other person as the Court
may determine.
(5) The receiver may sell or otherwise dispose of
any property transferred to him under this section, at the
direction of the Court, and any proceeds of such disposition
and any moneys transferred to him under this section shall be
paid into the Consolidated Fund.
(6) In any proceedings under subsection (1), before
deciding whether to make a civil forfeiture order or not, the
Court shall give to the convicted person and to any other
person claiming any right title or interest in the property an
opportunity of being heard and to show cause why the order
should not be made.
(7) The Court, if it considers it appropriate to do so
in the interest of justice, on the application of the Director of
Public Prosecutions or, if the whereabouts of the respondent
cannot be ascertained, on its own initiative, may adjourn the
hearing of an application under subsection (1) for a period not
exceeding two years as it considers reasonable
(8) The Court shall not make a civil forfeiture order
if it is satisfied that there would be a serious risk of injustice.
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Burden of
proof.


Bail not to be
granted in
certain cases.
12. When a person is accused of having committed an
offence under this Act the burden of proving that the
property held by him or someone on his behalf is not
proceeds of any crime and is untainted property shall be on
the accused person and the person claiming on his behalf.
13. (1) A Court shall not grant bail to any person
charged with an offence under section 7.
(2) Subject to subsections (3) and (4) a Court may
grant bail to any person charged with an offence other than
an offence under section 7.
(3) While considering an application for grant of
bail to a person charged with an offence other than an offence
under section 7, the Court shall take into consideration the
following matters—
(a) any previous conviction of the
accused of an indictable offence;
(b) the possibility of the accused
interfering with the course of justice
or any investigation, if bail is granted;
(c) the likelihood of the accused misusing
his liberty by indulging in criminal
activities;
(d) the likelihood of any attempt by the
accused to tamper with evidence or
witnesses;
(e) any threat to the safety of the accused
person, a witness, the victim or any
other person;
(f) any other criminal charges against the
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Jurisdiction.

Act not in
derogation.

Power to make
regulations.
accused pending before the Court or a
court of summary jurisdiction.
(4) No application under subsection (2) shall be
disposed of by the Court without giving the prosecution an
opportunity of being heard.
14. (1) Subject to subsection (2), where an offence
under this Act is committed outside Guyana, the person
committing such offence may be dealt with in respect of the
commission of the offence as if the offence had been
committed at any place within Guyana or its territorial
waters.
(2) A Court in Guyana shall not take cognizance of
an offence punishable under this Act which is committed
outside Guyana unless—
(a) the offence is committed on board a
vessel registered in Guyana;
(b) the offence is committed on board a
vessel being leased without crew to a
lessee who has his principal place of
business in Guyana or where he has
no such place of business, his
permanent residence is in Guyana; or
(c) the alleged offender is a citizen of
Guyana or is on board a vessel in
relation to which the offence is
committed when it enters Guyana or
is found in Guyana.
15. The provisions of this Act are in addition to and
not in derogation of the provisions of any other law.
16. Subject to negative resolution of the National
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Assembly, the Minister may make regulations for carrying
out the provisions of this Act.
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