(1)If the person entitled to the property referred to2021mentioned2021 in section 370 is unknown2024cannot be ascertained2024 or cannot be found, the Magistrate’s Court2018relevant court2018 may direct that it be detained in police custody2024continue to be subject to the custody or control of the relevant law enforcement agency2024 and the Commissioner of Police2024head of the relevant law enforcement agency2024 must, in that case, issue a public notice, specifying the articles of which the property consists and requiring any person who has a claim to it to appear before 2024him2021the 2021·2024Commissioner of Police2021·2024head of the relevant law enforcement agency2024·2024 and establish 2024his2021the person’s2021·2024 claim within 6 months from the date of the public notice2024claims that the person is entitled to the property to make the person’s claim to the relevant court within 6 months from the date of the public notice, and to thereafter appear before the relevant court to establish the person’s claim2024.
Section history
Section 372 — Procedure when person entitled to property cannot be ascertained or cannot be found
Consolidated view is experimental and may be broken for certain provisions.
(1A)An absconded person reasonably suspected of having committed a relevant offence in connection with which the property mentioned in section 35(1) or 78(1) or (1A) was seized, cannot, pursuant to the notice under subsection (1), make a claim that he or she is entitled to the property unless he or she personally presents himself or herself before a law enforcement officer for the purpose of an investigation into the relevant offence.
(1B)If a person establishes his or her claim in accordance with subsection (1), the relevant court must order that the property be delivered to that person; and section 371 applies to that person as if a reference in that section to the person entitled to the property mentioned in section 370 is a reference to that person.
(2)Every notice under subsection (1) must be published in the Gazette or any daily newspaper if, in the opinion of the Commissioner of Police2024head of the relevant law enforcement agency2024, the value of the property is at least $1,000.
Subsection (3) — Original text to 14 November 2024superseded
(3)If no person establishes a claim to the property within one month from the publication of a notice under subsection (1) and if the person in whose possession the property was found cannot show he2021the person2021 had legally acquired it, then the property may be sold on the order of the Commissioner of Police2024head of the relevant law enforcement agency2024.
Subsection (3) — From 14 November 2024 (current)repealed by Anti-Money Laundering and Other Matters Act 2024
(3)[Deleted by Act 24 of 2024 wef 14/11/2024]
(4)Notwithstanding2021Despite2021·2024 subsection (3), if2024If2024 property detained in police custody2024subject to the custody or control of the relevant law enforcement agency2024 under this section is perishable or is, in the opinion of the Commissioner of Police2024head of the relevant law enforcement agency2024, worth less than $1,000, or if keeping it involves unreasonable expense or inconvenience, then the property may be sold at any time and this section shall apply,2021applies,2021 as nearly as may be practicable, to the net proceeds of the sale.
Subsection (5) — Original text to 14 November 2024superseded
(5)If no person has established a claim to the property within 6 months from the publication of the notice referred to2021mentioned2021 in subsection (1), the ownership of the property or (if sold) its net proceeds shall2021pass2021 pass2021to2021 and be vested2021vest2021 in the Government absolutely.
Subsection (5) — From 14 November 2024 (current)rewritten by Anti-Money Laundering and Other Matters Act 2024
(5)The relevant court must order the ownership of the property or (if sold) its net proceeds to pass to and vest in the Government absolutely if —
(a)no person makes a claim to the property to the relevant court within 6 months from the publication of the notice mentioned in subsection (1); or
(b)where one or more persons have made any claim to the property to the relevant court within 6 months from the publication of the notice mentioned in subsection (1), the relevant court is satisfied that none of those persons is entitled to the property.
Subsection (6) — Original text to 14 November 2024superseded
(6)If a person establishes his2021the person’s2021 claim to the property within 6 months from the publication of the notice referred to2021mentioned2021 in subsection (1), and the property has already been sold by the Commissioner of Police2024head of the relevant law enforcement agency2024, that person shall2021is2021 only be2021 entitled to the net proceeds.
Subsection (6) — From 14 November 2024 (current)rewritten by Anti-Money Laundering and Other Matters Act 2024
(6)Where, at the time a person establishes that the person is entitled to the property in accordance with subsection (1), the property has already been sold by the head of the relevant law enforcement agency, that person is only entitled to the net proceeds.
(7)In respect of property to which the person entitled is unknown2024cannot be ascertained2024 or cannot be found, the Magistrate’s Court2018relevant court2018 may order the property to be destroyed or otherwise disposed of at any time if in its opinion —
(a)the property is of no appreciable value; or
(b)its value is so small as to —
(i)make its sale impracticable; or
(ii)make the keeping of it in police custody2024custody or control of it2024 unreasonably expensive or inconvenient.
(8)In this section, “relevant law enforcement agency” means the law enforcement agency to which the law enforcement officer who makes a report under section 370(1) belongs.