PART IV

Other Forms of Assistance

29. —For the purpose of assisting an international tribunal in an investigation into whether a person has committed an international tribunal crime or has benefited from such a crime, section 63 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1994 , shall have effect as if references in that section to drug trafficking included references to conduct constituting an international tribunal crime.

30. —(1) In response to a request from an international tribunal, the Minister may direct that an application to the District Court for a search warrant be made by a member of the Garda Síochána not below the rank of superintendent in connection with an international tribunal crime under investigation by that tribunal.

(2) A judge of the District Court who, on application in accordance with a direction under subsection (1), is satisfied that there are reasonable grounds for believing that there is in any place evidence relating to the commission of the international tribunal crime shall have the same power to issue a search warrant authorising entry, search and seizure in relation to that place as the judge would have in the case of an offence committed in the State and in respect of which similar powers are exercisable by the judge.

(3) The restriction in section 9 (2) of the Criminal Law Act, 1976 , on the seizure or retention of any document that was, or may have been, made for the purposes of obtaining, giving, or communicating legal advice shall apply to a member of the Garda Síochána who conducts a search under this section.

(4) A member of the Garda Síochána who seizes any evidence by virtue of this section shall provide to the Minister, for transmission to the international tribunal concerned—

(a) the seized evidence, and

(b) any certificate, affidavit or other verifying document that is necessary for the purposes of complying with the request and that may be specified in the direction given under subsection (1).

(5) If the seized evidence consists of a document, the original or a copy of the document shall be transmitted to the international tribunal that made the request.

(6) If the seized evidence consists of any article other than a document, the article itself or a description, photograph or other representation of it shall be transmitted to the international tribunal as may be necessary to comply with its request.

(7) In this section “evidence” includes documents and other articles.

31. —(1) The Minister shall transmit to the Commissioner of the Garda Síochána any order received by the Minister from an international tribunal—

(a) for provisional measures for the preservation and protection of property, or

(b) for the restitution of property unlawfully taken by a person convicted of an international tribunal crime.

(2) Where, on application by a member of the Garda Síochána not below the rank of Chief Superintendent, the High Court is satisfied that—

(a) an international tribunal order referred to in subsection (1)(a) has been received by the Minister, and

(b) at the time of making the interim order under this subsection the international tribunal order is in force and is not subject to appeal,

the Court, for the purposes of the preservation and protection of the property to which the international tribunal order relates, may, regardless of the value of the property but subject to subsection (5), make an interim order containing any terms that, under section 2 (1) and (2) of the Proceeds of Crime Act, 1996 , could be included in an interim order made under that Act if the value of the property were not less than £10,000.

(3) For the purposes mentioned in subsection (2) of this section, sections 2 (3) to (6), 3 (1) to (6), 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 and 10 to 16 of the Proceeds of Crime Act, 1996 , shall apply with the following modifications and any other necessary modifications, as if an application made under this section had been made under that Act:

(a) a reference in any of those sections to the applicant shall be construed as referring to the member of the Garda Síochána who has applied to the court for an interim order under this section or for an interlocutory order under section 3 of that Act as applied by this section;

(b) a reference in any of those sections to proceeds of crime shall be construed as referring to property that is the subject of the international tribunal order;

(c) a reference in any of those sections to a disposal order shall be construed as referring to a restitution order under this section;

(d) a reference in any of those sections to the Minister shall be construed as referring to the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform;

(e) a reference in section 2 (5) or 3 (5) of that Act to subsections (3) and (4) of the section in which the reference occurs shall be construed as including a reference to subsection (6) of this section;

(f) sections 2 (3)(b), 3 (1)(b) and 3 (1)(II) of that Act shall not apply;

(g) section 8 (1) of that Act shall be construed as if it did not contain the words after subparagraph (ii) and before “then”.

(4) Where, on application by a member of the Garda Síochána not below the rank of Chief Superintendent, the High Court is satisfied that—

(a) an international tribunal order referred to in subsection (1)(b) has been received by the Minister,

(b) at the time of making of the order under this subsection the international tribunal order is in force and is not subject to appeal,

(c) the international tribunal order has not been complied with in whole or in part, and

(d) notice of the application for an order under this subsection has been given to the person in respect of whom that application has been made and to any other person the Court may direct,

the Court may, subject to subsection (5), make an order (“a restitution order”) that the property be transferred to the person specified in the international tribunal order.

(5) Where it is shown that on the date on which an international tribunal order referred to in subsection (1)(a) or (b) was received by the Minister it had been partly complied with, the High Court shall make an order under this section only in so far as the international tribunal order had not been complied with by that date.

(6) Where, after the date on which a court order is made under this section or under the Proceeds of Crime Act, 1996 , as applied by this Act, it is shown that the international tribunal order to which the court order relates had been partly or wholly complied with by that date, the High Court may vary or discharge the court order accordingly with effect from that date.

(7) On receiving from the Minister an order of an international tribunal suspending the enforcement of an international tribunal order for the restitution of property, the High Court shall, by order, suspend, for the same period and under the same conditions that are stated in the suspending order of that tribunal, the execution of any court order made under subsection (4) in relation to the international tribunal order.

(8) While a suspending order made under subsection (7) remains in force, no steps shall be taken to enforce the order suspended by the High Court.

(9) On receiving a request from an international tribunal to determine the ownership of property, the Minister may make an application to the High Court for a decision as to the ownership of the property.

32. —(1) The Government may, by order, make provision for the privileges, immunities, exemptions and facilities to be accorded by the State to—

(a) the judges, prosecutors and registrars of an international tribunal and their staff, and

(b) any persons, including witnesses, and counsel, who make statements or submit documents or other evidence to or before an international tribunal.

(2) Section 37 (3) shall apply to orders made under this section as it applies to regulations made under section 37 (1)(c) to (g).

(3) The Government may, by order, revoke or amend an order made under this section, including an order under this subsection.

33. —(1) For the purposes of assisting an international tribunal in the performance of its functions, the Minister may—

(a) grant approval for the transit through the State of a person who is being transported in custody from one state to another for the purposes of that tribunal,

(b) attach to the approval any conditions he or she considers necessary, and

(c) arrange for the Garda Síochána to supervise the person's transit through the State.

(2) A person whose transit through the State is approved under subsection (1) shall be deemed to be in the custody of any member of the Garda Síochána accompanying him or her pursuant to an arrangement made under subsection (1)(c).

34. —Nothing in this Act shall be construed as preventing the provision of assistance to an international tribunal otherwise than under this Act.