s 17N Disposal of item given or seized
17N.—(1) Any item given to or seized by the chief executive officer or an authorised investigating officer under section 17G or 17H must —(a) where the item is produced in any criminal proceedings, be dealt with in accordance with section 364 of the Criminal Procedure Code 2010; or (b) in any other case, be dealt with in accordance with subsections (2), (3) and (4). (2) The chief executive officer or an authorised investigating officer must serve a written notice on the owner of the item instructing the owner to take custody of it within the period specified in the notice, which must be at least 5 days after the date of service of the notice. (3) If the owner fails to take custody of the item within the period specified in the notice, or where the owner is unknown or cannot be found, then —(a) if the item is a document (other than one specified in paragraph (d) or (e) of the definition of “document” in section 17H(20)), the item may be disposed of in any manner that the chief executive officer directs; or (b) if the item is anything not specified in paragraph (a), the chief executive officer must make a report of this to a Magistrate. (4) The Magistrate to whom a report is made under subsection (3)(b) may order the item to be forfeited or disposed of in any manner that the Magistrate thinks fit. (5) This section does not affect any right to retain or dispose of any item which may exist in law apart from this section.[Act 11 of 2024 wef 01/11/2024]