Bill to blot out crime proceeds

Gothataone Moeng | Thursday July 10, 2014 14:56

 

Presenting the Bill before Parliament on Tuesday, he said the proposed legislation would reverse the burden of proof and require the alleged offender to prove legitimacy of his property.

The existing Proceeds of Serious Crime Act and the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act deprive benefits of crime to people convicted of certain crimes. 

The two Acts provide for property or benefits to be forfeited upon conviction, or an order restraining property of a person who is charged or about to be charged with a serious offence.

Although the proposed Bill retains the conviction-based method of forfeiting the property, it also introduces a new non-conviction based forfeiture regime.

“Civil forfeiture regime will secure property suspected to be the proceed or instrument of crime using a lesser burden of proof, which is proof using a balance of probabilities,” Seretse said.

“Further, civil forfeiture will enable the property suspected to be a proceed or instrument of crime to be forfeited within a short period.

“What is being proposed has the effect of reversing the burden of proof on the alleged offender to prove the legitimacy of his or her property.”

According to the minister, the Bill’s aim is to repeal and re-enact the Proceeds of Serious Crime Act with amendments providing for penalty orders in the form of a pecuniary penalty order, penalty order in the form of a civil penalty order, automatic forfeiture and forfeiture orders. 

The pecuniary penalty order is conviction based and is an order to recover the value of benefits derived from the commission of an offence, while a civil penalty order is non-conviction based and is an order to compel a respondent to pay the government an amount assessed by the court as the value of benefits derived by the respondent from a serious crime related activity.

A forfeiture order is conviction based and is an order against the proceeds or instruments relating to an offence a person has been convicted of, while automatic forfeiture is conviction based and has the effect of forfeiting, to government, restrained property on the expiry of 60 days after conviction.

Further, the proposed Bill will cover proceeds from money laundering and racketeering, while also creating the Office of Receiver and a Confiscated Assets Trust Fund. Mahalapye West legislator, Bernard Bolele welcomed the proposed Bill, saying it was in line with trends across Africa and the world. He further said the Bill shows that government does not condone corruption.  “I would request a provision allowing victims of crimes to litigate, instead of government simply seizing the property,” he said.

Serowe South MP, Pelonomi Venson-Moitoi said the Bill showed that the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) government was firm on rooting out corruption.

The Bill has been passed to committee stage.