(1) A person shall not, except under the authority of a diversion certificate in the prescribed form issued by the Minister, cause or procure any controlled drug brought into Saint Lucia in transit to be diverted to any destination other than that to which it was originally consigned.
(2) In the case of a controlled drug in transit accompanied by an export authorisation or diversion certificate issued by a competent authority in a country oustide Saint Lucia, the country stated in that authorisation or certificate to be the country of destination shall be deemed to be the country of the original destination of that drug.
(3) The Minister shall not issue a diversion certificate under subsection (1) unless there is produced to him or her a valid and subsisting import certificate issued by the competent authority in the country to which it is proposed to divert the drug or, if that country is not a party to a convention, he or she is satisfied that the drug is to be sent in a lawful manner and for a proper purpose.
(4) A diversion certificate shall be issued in duplicate: one copy shall accompany the controlled drug when it is exported from Saint Lucia and the other copy shall be sent by or on behalf of the Minister direct to the competent authority in the country to which the drug is diverted.
(5) Upon the issue of a diversion certificate, the export authorisation or diversion certificate, if any, accompanying the controlled drug on its arrival in Saint Lucia shall be detained by the Minister and returned to the authority issuing it together with a notification of the name of the country to which the drug is diverted.
(6) A person who contravenes any of the provisions of subsection (1) is guilty of an offence under this Act.
(7) In this section “competent authority” means such authority, person or department as the Minister may, by order published in the Gazette, designate as the competent authority for the purposes of this section.
(Inserted by Act 8 of 1993)