Refusal to provide information, etc.
Open ↗75.—(1) Any person who fails to comply with a requirement imposed on the person under section 61A, 63, 64 or 65 shall be guilty of an offence.[23/2007]
(2) If a person is charged with an offence under subsection (1) in respect of a requirement to produce a document, it is a defence for the person to prove that —(a)
the document was not in the person’s possession or under the person’s control; and
(b)
it was not reasonably practicable for the person to comply with the requirement.
(3) If a person is charged with an offence under subsection (1) in respect of a requirement —(a)
to provide information or answer any question posed to the person;
(b)
to provide an explanation of a document; or
(c)
to state where a document is to be found,
it is a defence for the person to prove that the person had a reasonable excuse for failing to comply with the requirement.
[15/2018]
(4) Failure to comply with a requirement imposed under section 61A, 63 or 64 shall not be an offence if the person imposing the requirement has failed to act in accordance with that section.[23/2007]
Destroying or falsifying documents
Open ↗76. Any person who, having been required to produce a document under section 61A, 63, 64 or 65 —(a)
intentionally or recklessly destroys or otherwise disposes of it, falsifies it or conceals it; or
(b)
causes or permits its destruction, disposal, falsification or concealment,
shall be guilty of an offence.
[23/2007]
False or misleading information
Open ↗77.—(1) Any person who provides information to the Commission, an investigating officer or an inspector or any person authorised, appointed or employed to assist the Commission, investigating officer or inspector, in connection with any function or duty of the Commission, investigating officer or inspector under this Act shall be guilty of an offence if —(a)
the information is false or misleading in a material particular; and
(b)
he or she knows that it is false or misleading in a material particular or is reckless as to whether it is.
(2) A person who —(a)
provides an information to another person, knowing the information to be false or misleading in a material particular; or
(b)
recklessly provides any information to another person which is false or misleading in a material particular,
knowing that the information is to be used for the purpose of providing information to the Commission, an investigating officer or an inspector or any person authorised, appointed or employed to assist the Commission, investigating officer or inspector, in connection with any function or duty of the Commission, investigating officer or inspector under this Act, shall be guilty of an offence.
Obstruction of officer of Commission, etc.
Open ↗78. Any person who refuses to give access to, or assaults, hinders or delays any member, officer, employee or agent of the Commission authorised to act for or assist the Commission, or any inspector or person assisting an inspector, in the discharge of his or her duties under this Act shall be guilty of an offence.
No costs or damages or other relief arising from seizure to be recoverable unless seizure without reasonable or probable cause
Open ↗79. No person is, in any proceedings before any court in respect of any equipment, article or document seized in the exercise or the purported exercise of any power conferred under this Act, entitled to the costs of the proceedings or to any damages or other relief other than an order for the return of the equipment, article or document or the payment of their value unless the seizure was made without reasonable or probable cause.
Powers of enforcement
Open ↗80.—(1) In addition to the powers conferred on him or her by this Act or any other written law, an officer or employee of the Commission may, in relation to any offence under this Act, on declaration of his or her office and production to the person against whom he or she is acting such identification card as the Chief Executive may direct to be carried by officers or employees of the Commission —(a)
require any person whom the officer or employee of the Commission reasonably believes to have committed that offence to furnish evidence of the person’s identity;
(b)
require any person to furnish any information or produce any document or copy thereof in the possession of that person, and may, without fee or reward, inspect, make copies or extracts from such document; and
(c)
require, by written order, the attendance before the officer or employee of any person being within the limits of Singapore who, from the information given or otherwise obtained by the officer or employee, appears to be acquainted with the circumstances of the case.
(2) Any person who —(a)
wilfully misstates or without lawful excuse refuses to give any information or produce any document or copy thereof required of him or her by an officer or employee of the Commission under subsection (1); or
(b)
fails to comply with a lawful demand of an officer or employee of the Commission in the discharge of his or her duties by such officer or employee under this Act,
shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $5,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or to both.
Offences by bodies corporate, etc.
Open ↗81.—(1) Where an offence under this Act committed by a body corporate is proved —(a)
to have been committed with the consent or connivance of an officer; or
(b)
to be attributable to any neglect on the officer’s part,
the officer as well as the body corporate shall be guilty of the offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly.
(2) Where the affairs of a body corporate are managed by its members, subsection (1) applies in relation to the acts and defaults of a member in connection with the member’s functions of management as if the member were a director of the body corporate.
(3) Where an offence under this Act committed by a partnership is proved —(a)
to have been committed with the consent or connivance of a partner; or
(b)
to be attributable to any neglect on the partner’s part,
the partner as well as the partnership shall be guilty of the offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly.
(4) Where an offence under this Act committed by an unincorporated association (other than a partnership) is proved —(a)
to have been committed with the consent or connivance of an officer of the unincorporated association or a member of its governing body; or
(b)
to be attributable to any neglect on the officer’s or member’s part,
the officer or member as well as the unincorporated association shall be guilty of the offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly.
(5) In this section —“officer” —(a)
in relation to a body corporate, means any director, member of the committee of management, chief executive, manager, secretary or other similar officer of the body corporate and includes any person purporting to act in any such capacity; or
(b)
in relation to an unincorporated association (other than a partnership), means the president, the secretary, or any member of the committee of the unincorporated association, or any person holding a position analogous to that of president, secretary or member of a committee and includes any person purporting to act in any such capacity;
“partner” includes a person purporting to act as a partner.
(6) The Commission may, with the approval of the Minister, make regulations to provide for the application of any provision of this section, with such modifications as may be appropriate, to any body corporate or unincorporated association formed or recognised under the law of a territory outside Singapore.
Jurisdiction of court
Open ↗82. Despite any provision to the contrary in the Criminal Procedure Code 2010, a District Court has jurisdiction to try any offence under this Act and has power to impose the full penalty or punishment for any such offence.
General penalty
Open ↗83. Any person who is guilty of an offence under this Act for which no penalty is expressly provided shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $10,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or to both.
Composition of offences
Open ↗84.—(1) Any offence under —(a)
this Act; or
(b)
any subsidiary legislation made under this Act,
may be compounded under this section if the offence is prescribed as a compoundable offence.
(2) For the purpose of subsection (1), the Commission may, with the approval of the Minister, make regulations —(a)
to prescribe the offences under this Act or any subsidiary legislation made under this Act as offences that may be compounded under this section;
(b)
to designate the person who may compound such offences; and
(c)
to specify the maximum sum for which such offence may be compounded, except that the maximum sum so specified must not exceed the lower of the following:(i)
one half of the amount of the maximum fine that is prescribed for the offence;
(ii)
$5,000.
(3) The person designated under subsection (2)(b) may compound any offence prescribed under subsection (2)(a) by collecting from a person who is reasonably suspected of having committed the offence a sum of money not exceeding the maximum sum that is specified under subsection (2)(c) in respect of that offence.
Source: Singapore Statutes Online (Attorney-General's Chambers), © Government of Singapore.
