(1) Any animal or any part of any animal or any egg or nest of any animal that has been unlawfully caught or killed or taken or unlawfully had in possession is hereby declared to be forfeited to Her Majesty.
(2) It shall be the duty of every ranger or constable or other authorised person who has seized or otherwise obtained possession of any such animal or part of any animal or egg or nest of any such animal to forward immediate notification thereof to the Director-General (or, in the case of any such animal or part of any animal or egg or nest seized by a fish and game ranger, to the Director), who, on the conviction of any person for unlawfully catching, hunting, killing, or taking the same or having the same in his possession, or, if no such person can be traced within 6 months after the seizure or taking possession, shall, in order to give effect to the forfeiture as aforesaid, give such orders as he thinks fit for the disposal of the thing seized, and those orders shall immediately on receipt thereof be carried out by the person to whom they are given.
(3) In the case of all other property lawfully seized or taken into possession under this Act, the property shall be retained by the Director-General or the Director, as the case may be, pending the trial of any person for the offence in respect of which the property was seized or taken into possession. If no such person can be traced within 6 months after the seizure or taking into possession, the property shall be deemed to be forfeited to the Crown, and shall be disposed of as the Director-General or the Director, as the case may be, directs. Where proceedings are taken against any person in respect of the offence, the property seized or taken into possession shall, when the proceedings are completed, be returned to the person last in possession of the property, unless the Court, where it enters a conviction, directs that the property or any part of it be forfeited to the Crown, in which case the property or part thereof, as the case may be, shall be deemed to be forfeited to the Crown accordingly, and shall be disposed of as the Director-General or the Director, as the case may be, directs.
(4) Notwithstanding anything in the Public Finance Act 1977, the power conferred on the Director-General or the Director by subsection (3) of this section to direct the disposal of any property forfeited to the Crown under that subsection shall, in any case where the prosecution was commenced on the information of an officer of a Fish and Game Council, include power to dispose of the property to that Council, without consideration, for the purposes of sale; and the property shall be sold by the Council and the proceeds of the sale shall be paid into its funds and applied for the purposes of the Council.
Compare: 1921-22 No 57 s 43(1)(z)
In subsections (2) and (3) the expression “6 months”
was substituted for the expression “12 months”
by section 12 of the Wildlife Amendment Act 1959.
In subsections (2) to (4) the word “Director-General”
was substituted, as from 1 April 1987, for the word “Secretary”
pursuant to section 65(1) Conservation Act 1987 (1987 No 65).
Subsection (2) was amended, as from 25 November 1994, by section 8(a) Wildlife Amendment Act 1994 (1994 No 109) by inserting the words “(or, in the case of any such animal or part of any animal or egg or nest seized by a fish and game ranger, to the Director)”
.
Subsection (3) was amended, as from 25 November 1994, by section 8(b) Wildlife Amendment Act 1994 (1994 No 109) by inserting the words “or the Director, as the case may be,”
.
Subsection (4) was inserted by section 3 of the Wildlife Amendment Act 1971, and the Public Finance Act 1977, being the corresponding enactment in force at this time, has been substituted for the repealed Public Revenues Act 1953.
Subsection (4) was amended, as from 10 April 1990, by section 85(a) Conservation Law Reform Act 1990 (1990 No 31) by substituting the words “a Fish and Game Council”
for the words “an acclimatisation society other than a department of State”
. It was further amended, as from 10 April 1990, by section 85(b) of that Act by substituting the word “Council”
for the word “society”
where it secondly, thirdly and fourthly occurs.
Subsection (4) was amended, as from 25 November 1994, by section 8(c) Wildlife Amendment Act 1994 (1994 No 109) by inserting the words “or the Director”
.