Criminal Justice Act, 1994

PART IV

Money Laundering

Money laundering, etc.

31.—(1) A person shall be guilty of an offence if he—

(a) conceals or disguises any property which is, or in whole or in part directly or indirectly represents, his proceeds of drug trafficking or other criminal activity, or

(b) converts or transfers that property or removes it from the State,

for the purpose of avoiding prosecution for an offence or the making or enforcement in his case of a confiscation order.

(2) A person shall be guilty of an offence if, knowing or believing that any property is, or in whole or in part directly or indirectly represents, another person's proceeds of drug trafficking or other criminal activity, he—

(a) conceals or disguises that property, or

(b) converts or transfers that property or removes it from the State,

for the purpose of assisting any person to avoid prosecution for an offence or the making or enforcement of a confiscation order.

(3) A person shall be guilty of an offence if he handles any property knowing or believing that such property is, or in whole or in part directly or indirectly represents, another person's proceeds of drug trafficking or other criminal activity.

(4) In subsection (1) (a) and (2) (a) of this section the references to concealing or disguising any property include references to concealing or disguising its nature, source, location, disposition, movement or ownership or any rights with respect to it.

(5) In subsections (1) (b) and (2) (b) of this section the references to converting, transferring or removing any property include the provision of any advice or assistance in relation to converting, transferring or removing such property.

(6) For the purposes of subsection (3) of this section, a person handles property if he dishonestly—

(a) receives it, or

(b) undertakes or assists in its retention, removal, disposal or realisation by or for the benefit of another person, or

(c) arranges to do any of the things specified in paragraph (a) or (b) of this subsection.

(7) Where a person does, in relation to any property which is, or in whole or in part directly or indirectly represents, another person's proceeds of drug trafficking or of any other criminal activity, any of the acts specified in subsection (2) or (3) of this section in such circumstances that it is reasonable to conclude that he knew or believed that the property was, or in whole or in part directly or indirectly represented, another person's proceeds of drug trafficking or other criminal activity, he shall be taken to have so known or believed unless the court or jury, as the case may be, is satisfied having regard to all the evidence that there is a reasonable doubt as to whether he so knew or believed.

(8) In this section believing property to be, or in whole or in part directly or indirectly to represent, another person's proceeds of drug trafficking or other criminal activity includes thinking that the property was probably, or probably represented, such proceeds.

(9) A person guilty of an offence under this section shall be liable—

(a) on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding £1,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or to both, or

(b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 14 years or to both.

(10) Offences created by this section shall be felonies.

(11) The provisions of this section shall, in so far as they relate to the proceeds of drug trafficking or other criminal activity, apply whether the drug trafficking or other criminal activity concerned took place in the State or elsewhere, and whether it occurred before or after the commencement of this section, provided that where the trafficking or other activity occurred outside the State it corresponded to an offence under the law of the State and amounted to an offence under the law of the country or territory in which it occurred.