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Repeal and substitution of section 20 of Act of 1990.
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30.—Section 20 of the Act of 1990 is repealed and the following substituted:
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“20.—(1) If a judge of the District Court is satisfied by information on oath laid by a designated officer that there are reasonable grounds for suspecting that any material information is to be found on any premises (including a dwelling), the judge may issue a search warrant under this section.
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(2) A search warrant issued under this section shall be expressed and operate to authorise a named designated officer (‘the officer’), accompanied by such other persons as the officerthinks necessary, at any time or times within 1 month from the date of issue of the warrant, on production if so requested of the warrant, to—
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(a) enter the premises named in the warrant, if necessary by force,
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(b) search the premises,
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(c) require any person found on the premises—
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(i) to give to the officer his name, home address and occupation, and
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(ii) to produce to the officer any material information which is in the custody or possession of that person,
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(d) seize and retain any material information found on the premises or in the custody or possession of any person found on the premises, and
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(e) take any other steps which appear to the officer to be necessary for preserving or preventing interference with material information.
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(3) Any material information which is seized under subsection (2) may be retained for a period of 6 months, or such longer period as may be permitted by a judge of the District Court, or if within that period there are commenced any proceedings to which the material information is relevant, until the conclusion of those proceedings.
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(4) The officer may—
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(a) operate any computer at the place which is being searched or cause any such computer to be operated by a person accompanying the officer, and
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(b) require any person at that place who appears to the officer to be in a position to facilitate access to the information held in any such computer or which can be accessed by the use of that computer—
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(i) to give to the officer any password necessary to operate it,
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(ii) otherwise to enable the officer to examine the information accessible by the computer in a form in which the information is visible and legible, or
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(iii) to produce the information in a form in which it can be removed and in which it is, or can be made, visible and legible.
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(5) The power to issue a warrant under this section is in addition to and not in substitution for any other power to issue a warrant for the search of any place or person.
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(6) A person who—
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(a) obstructs the exercise of a right of entry or search conferred by virtue of a search warrant issued under this section,
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(b) obstructs the exercise of a right so conferred to seize and retain material information,
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(c) fails to comply with a requirement under subsection (2)(c) or gives a name, address or occupation which is false or misleading, or
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(d) fails to comply with a requirement under subsection(4)(b)),
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shall be guilty of an offence.
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(7) In this section—
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‘computer’ includes a personal organiser or any other electronic means of information storage or retrieval;
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‘computer at the place which is being searched’ includes any other computer, whether at that place or at any other place, which is lawfully accessible by means of that computer;
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‘designated officer’ means the Director or an officer of the Director authorised in that behalf by the Director; and
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‘material information’ means—
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(a) any books or documents of which production has been required under or by virtue of section 14, 15 or 19 and which have not been produced in compliance with that requirement, or
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(b) any books or documents or other things (including a computer) which the officer has reasonable grounds for believing may provide evidence of or relating to the commission of an offence under the Companies Acts.”.
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