Crimes (Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and

Psychotropic Substances) Amendment Act 1992

No. 77 of 1992

An Act to amend the Crimes (Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances) Act 1990

[Assented to 26 June 1992]

The Parliament of Australia enacts:

Short title etc.

1.(1) This Act may be cited as the Crimes (Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances) Amendment Act 1992.

(2) In this Act, “Principal Act” means the Crimes (Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances) Act 1990¹.

Commencement

2.  This Act commences immediately after the commencement of the Principal Act.

Interpretation

3.  Section 3 of the Principal Act is amended by inserting the following definitions:

“ ‘interest’, in relation to property, means:

(a)     a legal or equitable estate or interest in the property; or

(b)    a right, power or privilege in connection with the property;

whether present or future and whether vested or contingent;

‘property’ means real or personal property of every description, whether situated in Australia or elsewhere and whether tangible or intangible, and includes an interest in any such real or personal property;

‘serious State drug offence’ means any conduct that is:

(a)     a dealing in drugs referred to in paragraph 6(1)(a), (b), (c), (d), (e), (f), (fa) or (fb); or

(b)    a dealing in drugs referred to in paragraph 6(2)(b); or

(c)     a dealing in drugs referred to in paragraph 6(1)(g) or 6(2)(a), (ba) or (c);

and constitutes an offence against a law of a State or Territory punishable, on conviction, by imprisonment for at least 12 months;”.

Meaning of “dealing in drugs”

4.  Section 6 of the Principal Act is amended:

(a)  by inserting after paragraph (1)(f) the following paragraphs:

“(fa) the manufacture, transport or distribution of any substance listed in Table I or Table II in the Annex to the Convention or of equipment or materials, with the knowledge that the substance, equipment or materials are to be used for a purpose set out in paragraph (a), (b) or (c);

(fb) organising, managing or financing a dealing in drugs referred to in paragraphs (a), (b), (c), (d), (e), (f) or (fa);”;

(b)  by omitting paragraph (2)(b) and substituting the following paragraphs:

“(b) being a party to any dealing in drugs referred to in subsection (1);

(ba) aiding, abetting, counselling or procuring, or being by act or omission in any way directly or indirectly knowingly concerned in, any conduct that is, under subsection (1), a dealing in drugs;”.

5.  After section 8 of the Principal Act the following section is inserted in Part 1:

Proof of knowledge, intent or purpose

“8A.(1) If a particular knowledge, intent or purpose is an element of an offence against this Act, that knowledge, intent or purpose may be inferred from objective factual circumstances.

“(2) Subsection (1) is not intended to exclude or limit any other way of proving knowledge, intent or purpose as an element of an offence for the purposes of a prosecution.”.

6. After section 15 of the Principal Act the following sections are inserted in Part 2:

Knowingly converting etc. property derived from a serious State drug offence

“15A. Any person who, knowing that any property was derived from a serious State drug offence, in a State other than a prescribed State or a Territory other than a prescribed Territory:

(a)  converts that property to his or her own use or to the use of another person; or

(b)  transfers that property to another person;

for the purpose of:

(c)     concealing or disguising that the property was derived from the offence; or

(d)    assisting another person involved in the commission of the offence to evade the legal consequences of that involvement;

is guilty of an offence punishable, on conviction, by imprisonment for a period not exceeding 20 years.

Knowingly concealing etc. property derived from a serious State drug offence

“15B. Any person who, knowing that any property was derived from a serious State drug offence, in a State other than a prescribed State or a Territory other than a prescribed Territory, conceals or disguises:

(a)     the nature, source, or location, of the property; or

(b)     any movement of the property; or

(c)     the rights of any person with respect to the property; or

(d)     the identity of any owner of the property;

is guilty of an offence punishable, on conviction, by imprisonment for a period not exceeding 20 years.

Knowingly acquiring etc. property derived from a serious State drug offence

“15C. If:

(a)     a person, in a State other than a prescribed State or a Territory other than a prescribed Territory, acquires, has in his or her possession or uses any property; and

(b)    the person knows or knew at the time when he or she receives or received the property that it was derived from a serious State drug offence;

the person is guilty of an offence punishable, on conviction, by imprisonment for a period not exceeding 20 years.”.

7. The Principal Act is amended by adding at the end the following section:

Regulations

“22.(1) The Governor-General may make regulations prescribing matters:

(a)     required or permitted by this Act to be prescribed; or

(b)    necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to this Act.

“(2) The Governor-General may not make regulations prescribing a State or Territory for the purposes of section 15A, 15B or 15C (in this subsection called the ‘relevant section’) unless the Governor-General is satisfied that any conduct that, immediately before the making of the regulations, is an offence against the relevant section is also an offence against a law of that State or Territory.”.

NOTE

1. No. 97, 1990.

[Minister’s second reading speech made in—

House of Representatives on 5 March 1992

Senate on 4 May 1992]