Dawn raids are a vital tool of investigation used by enforcement agencies and other institutions charged with investigations. For instance, the police would undertake an unannounced visit often in the early hours of the morning, hoping to use the element of surprise to arrest culprits. This concept of dawn raids has also been adopted by Competition Authorities throughout the world and has formed a very important investigative tool.
In the context of the Competition Authority, a dawn raid is therefore an unannounced inspection that can be carried out on any business enterprise that is suspected of engaging in or being about to engage in conduct that infringes the Competition Act. The emphasis is on the element of surprise. To heighten the element of surprise, the raid is performed without prior consent or knowledge of those subject to the raid, but must be approved by the Magistrate's Court, which will grant permission in the form of a search warrant, thus authorising named persons (inspectors) of the authority to exercise the powers of search and seizure.
