Section 27
Powers of inspection and seizure
Whenever it appears to any Magistrate or Justice of the
Peace, upon information and after such inquiry as he thinks necessary, that there is reasonable cause to believe that in or on any premises there is concealed or deposited any dangerous drug, syringe, pipe, lamp, utensil or other article liable to forfeiture under this Act, or as to which an offence under this Act has been committed, or any book or document directly or indirectly relating to or connected with any transaction or dealing which was, or any intended transaction or dealing which would if carried out be, an offence under this Act, or, in the case of a transaction or dealing carried out or intended to be carried out in any place outside Malaysia, an offence under the provisions of any corresponding law in force in that place, such
Magistrate or Justice of the Peace may, by his warrant directed to any police officer not below the rank of Sergeant or to any officer of
Dangerous Drugs 31
customs or to any Drug Enforcement Officer, empower such officer by day or by night—
(a)
to enter such premises and there to search for, and seize and detain, any such dangerous drug, article, book or document;
(b)
where the officer is a police officer or an officer of customs, to arrest any person or persons being in or on such premises in whose possession any dangerous drug or article subject to forfeiture under this Act is found, or whom the officer reasonably believes to have concealed or deposited such dangerous drug or article; and
(c)
to seize and detain any book or document found in or on such premises or on such person.
(2)
Such officer may if it is necessary so to do—
(a)
break open any outer or inner door or window of such premises and enter thereinto;
(b)
forcibly enter such premises and every part thereof;
(c)
remove by force any obstruction to such entry, search, seizure and removal as he is empowered to effect;
(d)
detain every person found in or on such premises, until such premises have been searched.
(3)
Any police officer not below the rank of Sub-Inspector or any senior officer of customs or any Drug Enforcement Officer or any person authorized in that behalf by any general or special order of the
Minister may, for the purposes of this Act, enter the premises of any person carrying on the business of a producer, manufacturer, seller or distributor of any dangerous drug and demand the production of, and inspect, any book or document relating to dealing in any such dangerous drug, and inspect any stock of such dangerous drug.
(4)
Whenever it appears to any police officer not below the rank of
Sub-Inspector or to any senior officer of customs or to any Drug
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Enforcement Officer that there is reasonable cause to believe that in or on any premises there is concealed or deposited, in contravention of this Act, any dangerous drug, syringe, pipe, lamp, utensil or other article or any such book or document as is described in subsection (1)
and he has good grounds for believing that, by reason of the delay in obtaining a search warrant, the object of the search is likely to be frustrated, he may exercise in, upon and in respect of such premises all the powers mentioned in subsection (1), except, in the case of a
Drug Enforcement Officer, the power of arrest, in as full and ample a manner as if he were empowered to do so by warrant issued under the said subsection.
(5)
Any police officer not below the rank of Sub-Inspector or any senior officer of customs shall be entitled to exercise in, upon and in respect of any ship, not being or having the status of a ship of war, or any aircraft, islet, landing place or wharf or any warehouse or place adjoining a wharf, and used in connection therewith, all the powers mentioned in subsection (1) in as full and ample a manner as if he were empowered to do so by warrant issued under the said subsection.
(6)
Any police officer or officer of customs may, for the purpose of carrying out this Act, board any ship, not being or having the status of a ship of war, or any aircraft and remain on board as long as such ship or aircraft remains in Malaysia.
(7)
Any box, chest, package or other article, which is being landed or has been recently landed from any ship or which is in or upon any ship (not being or having the status of a ship of war), aircraft, islet, landing place or wharf, or which is being removed from any such ship, islet, landing place or wharf, or which is being brought into, or has recently been brought into Malaysia, by land, air or water, or is about to be taken out of Malaysia by land, air or water—
(a)
may be examined and searched by any officer of customs and may be detained until any person in charge or possession thereof has opened the same to admit of such examination and search and in default of such opening may be removed by such officer to a police station or to a customs office;
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(b)
may be broken open by the order of any senior officer of customs to facilitate such examination and search:
Provided that any person in charge, or in possession of such box, chest, package or other article shall be afforded every reasonable facility for being present at such breaking open, examination or search.
(8)
Any police officer or any officer of customs may stop and search any conveyance which he has reasonable ground for believing to be used for the carriage of any dangerous drug in contravention of this Act.
(9)
Any person landing or being about to land or having recently landed from any ship, or leaving any ship in the waters of Malaysia, whether for the purpose of landing or otherwise, or entering or having recently entered Malaysia by land, air or water, or being about to leave Malaysia by land, air or water shall—
(a)
on demand by any officer of customs, either permit his person and goods and baggage to be searched by such officer or, together with such goods and baggage, accompany such officer to a police station or a customs office, and there permit his person, goods and baggage to be searched by any officer of customs in the presence and under the supervision of a senior officer of customs;
(b)
on demand by any senior officer of customs, permit his person and goods and baggage to be searched by him or by some other officer of customs in his presence and under his supervision:
Provided that the goods of any person who claims to be present when these are searched shall not be searched except in his presence and provided that no female shall be searched except by a female.
34 Laws of Malaysia ACT 234