On 26/05/2013,
you requested for the version in force on 26/05/2013
incorporating all amendments published on or before 26/05/2013.
The closest version currently available is that of 30/12/2000.
PART V
OFFENCES AND PENALTIES
27.
—(1) Any person who —
(a)
whilst in any premises used for the purposes of the business of a public postal licensee, intentionally obstructs the course of business of the licensee; or
(b)
assaults or intentionally obstructs or incites anyone to obstruct or impede an officer or employee of a public postal licensee in the performance of his duties,
shall be guilty of an offence.
(2) A public postal licensee may require any person guilty of an offence under subsection (1) to leave the premises used for the purposes of its business and, if any such offender who is so required refuses or fails to comply with the requirement, he may be removed by an officer or employee of the licensee.
28. Any person who intending —
(a)
to prevent or obstruct the transmission or delivery of any postal article;
(b)
to intercept or to acquaint himself with the contents of anyletter; or
(c)
to commit mischief,
damages, removes, tampers with or touches any installation or plant or any part thereof used for posts belonging to a public postal licensee shall be guilty of an offenceand shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $10,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years or to both.
29.
—(1) No person shall, without the written approval of the Postal Authority —
(a)
lay or carry any mains, pipes, conduits, circuits or wires in, along, through, across, over or under any street or place in a manner which is likely to interfere with or cause damage to any installation or plant used for posts; or
(b)
affix any placard, advertisement, notice or other thing in or on, or paint, tar or in any way disfigure any installation or plant used for posts.
(2) Any approval under subsection (1) may be refused by the Postal Authority or granted by the Postal Authority on such terms and conditions as it may determine.
(3) Where the commission by any person of an offence under subsection (1) is due to the act or default of some other person, that other person shall be guilty of the offence.
(4) A person may be charged with and convicted of the offence by virtue of subsection (3) whether or not proceedings are taken against the first-mentioned person.
(5) In any proceedings for an offence under subsection (1), it shall, subject to subsection (6), be a defence for the person charged to prove that he took all reasonable steps and exercised all due diligence to avoid committing the offence.
(6) Where the defence provided by subsection (5) involves an allegation that the commission of the offence was due to the act or default of another person, the person charged shall not, without leave of the court, be entitled to rely on that defence unless, within a period ending 7 clear days before the hearing, he has served on the prosecutor a notice in writing giving such information identifying or assisting in the identification of that other person as was then in his possession.
(7) Any person who contravenes or fails to comply with subsection (1) shall be guilty of an offence and shall, in addition to the forfeiture of any equipment seized, be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $10,000 and, in the case of a continuing offence, to a further fine not exceeding $1,000 for every day or part thereof during which the offence continues after conviction.
30. Any person who, without the permission of a public postal licensee, places or maintains in or on any house or place, belonging to him or under his control, any word, letter or mark which signifies or implies or may reasonably lead the public to believe that the house or place is part of a public postal licensee’s installation or plant, shall be guilty of an offence.
31. Any person who wilfully removes, destroys or damages any installation or plant which belongs to a public postal licensee and is used for posts shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $50,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years or to both.
32.
—(1) Any person who removes, destroys or damages, whether wilfully, negligently, accidentally or otherwise, the installation or plant which belongs to a public postal licensee and is used for posts shall, in addition to any penalty for which he is liable for an offence under this Act, be liable to pay compensation for the damage he has done.
(2) The compensation shall be recoverable by civil action or suit before any court of competent jurisdiction.
(3) Subject to subsection (1), any court before which a person is charged with an offence under this Act may assess the compensation payable under this section and may make an order for the payment of the same.
(4) Any order under subsection (3) may be enforced as if it were a judgment in a civil action or suit.
33. Subject to section 5, any person who —
(a)
conveys any letteror postcard or performs any service incidental to such conveyance without a licence granted under section 6;
(b)
collects, sends, tenders or delivers in order to be sent a letteror postcard without a licence granted under section 6; or
(c)
makes a collection of lettersor postcards for transmission or distribution to or from any place through a public postal licensee without a licence granted under section 6,
shall be guilty of an offence.
34. Any officer, employee or agent of a public postal licensee who —
(a)
destroys or throws away any postal article in the course of transmission by post or anything contained therein;
(b)
commits theft in respect of or dishonestly misappropriates or secretes any postal article in the course of transmission by post or anything contained therein;
(c)
except in obedience to an order under the hand of the Minister or the direction of a court, wilfully opens or causes to be opened contrary to his duty any mail bag or postal article in the course of transmission by post or wilfully detains or delays or causes to be detained or delayed the mail bag or postal article;
(d)
issues or causes to be issued a document specified for use in connection with the remittance of money with fraudulent intent;
(e)
fraudulently puts any wrong official mark on a postal article;
(f)
fraudulently alters, removes or causes to disappear any official mark on a postal article; or
(g)
being entrusted with the delivery of any postal article, knowingly demands or receives any sum of money which is not chargeable under this Act,
shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction for —
(i)
an offence under paragraph (a), (b), (c) or (d) to a fine not exceeding $10,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years or to both; and
(ii)
an offence under paragraph (e), (f) or (g) to a fine not exceeding $5,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or to both.
35. Any person who sends any postal article bearing any facsimile, imitation or representation of postage stamps or purporting to be prepaid with any postage stamp which has previously been used to prepay any other postal article or which has otherwise been previously used shall be guilty of an offenceand shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $10,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years or to both.
36.
—(1) Any person who —
(a)
except in accordance with this Act or unless authorised by a public postal licensee, wilfully retains or secretes or makes away with or keeps or detains or, when required by an employee of a public postal licensee, neglects or refuses to deliver up in the course of transmission by post any postal article or any mail bag containing any postal article; or
(b)
except in accordance with this Act or unless authorised by a public postal licensee, wilfully opens or causes to be opened any letter which ought to have been delivered, or does any act whereby the due delivery of a letter to any person is prevented or impeded,
shall be guilty of an offenceand shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $10,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years or to both.
(2) Nothing in subsection (1)(b) shall apply to a person who does any act to which that subsection applies where he is a parent, or in the position of a parent or guardian, of the person to whom the letter is addressed and the addressee is a minor or his ward.
37. Any person who sends by post —
(a)
any indecent or obscene article or any postal article having any words, marks or designs of an indecent, obscene, seditious, scurrilous, threatening or grossly offensive character;
(b)
anything which is likely to damage any postal article in the course of transmission by post or any postal equipment or injure any employee or agent of apublic postal licensee; or
(c)
except as otherwise provided by any regulations made under this Act, any explosive, inflammable, dangerous, filthy, noxious or deleterious substance, any sharp instrument not properly protected or any living creature which is noxious or likely to damage any postal article in the course of transmission by post or any postal equipment or to injure any employee or agent of a public postal licensee ,
shall be guilty of an offenceand shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $10,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years or to both.
38.
—(1) No person shall —
(a)
make, deal in, distribute or sell;
(b)
knowingly use for postal purposes or for the purpose of remitting or paying any money;
(c)
have in his possession without any lawful excuse; or
(d)
make or, without any lawful excuse, have in his possession, any die, plate, instrument or material for making,
any facsimile, imitation or representation of any postage stamp or any document used by a public postal licensee in connection with the remittance or payment of money.
(2) No person shall make, issue or send by post any stamped or embossed envelope, wrapper, card, form or paper in imitation of one issued by a public postal licensee.
(3) Any person who contravenes or fails to comply with subsection (1) or (2) shall be guilty of an offenceand shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $10,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years or to both.
(4) Any stamp, die, plate, instrument or material found in the possession of any person who has contravened or failed to comply with subsection (1) or (2) may be seized by any employee of the public postal licensee and forfeited by a Magistrate’s Court, and shall be dealt with as the Court directs.
39. Any person who, with fraudulent intent, erases or removes from a postage stamp any mark put or impressed upon the postage stamp denoting that the same has been used, or sells or uses any such postage stamp for postal purposes shall be guilty of an offenceand shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $10,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years or to both.