Revised Laws of Saint Lucia (2022)

23.   Apprehension of certain offenders

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   (1)   Subject to this section, where an authorised person has reasonable cause to believe and believes that an offence has been committed against section 14, he or she may exercise all or any of the following powers, namely—

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      (a)     within the maritime areas of Saint Lucia, stop, board, inspect and search any vessel, or enter, inspect and search any installation, which he or she has reasonable cause to believe is being used for or in connection with the commission of the offence;

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      (b)     arrest, with or without a warrant, any person on board the vessel, or on the installation, referred to in paragraph (a), or found elsewhere in Saint Lucia, whom he or she has reasonable cause to believe has committed an offence against that section;

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      (c)     detain the vessel, referred to in paragraph (a), if he or she has reasonable cause to believe that an offence against that section has been committed by the owner or master of the vessel; and

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      (d)     enter, inspect and search any installation whose establishment, construction, operation or use would constitute the offence against that section and arrest, with or without a warrant, any person on the installation, or found elsewhere in Saint Lucia, whom he or she has reasonable cause to believe has committed the offence.

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   (2)   Subject to this section, where an authorised person has reasonable cause to believe and believes that an offence has been committed against section 18, he or she may, within the territorial sea, exercise all or any of the following powers, namely—

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      (a)     stop, board, inspect and search the foreign vessel which, in contravention of that section, engages in any proscribed activity;

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      (b)     arrest, with or without a warrant, the master of the vessel;

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      (c)     arrest, with or without a warrant, any other person on board the vessel whom he or she has reasonable cause to believe has committed an offence against that section; and

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      (d)     detain the vessel.

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   (3)   An authorised person may exercise any of the powers conferred on him by subsection (1) or (2) with the aid of such assistants as he or she considers necessary for the purpose.

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   (4)   Where a vessel is detained under subsection (1)(c) or (2)(d), it shall be held in the custody of the Crown until—

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      (a)     a decision is made not to bring a prosecution in respect of the alleged offence in relation to which the vessel was detained; or

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      (b)     where a decision is made to bring such a prosecution, the security required under subsection (6) is given in respect of the vessel.

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   (5)   The decision whether or not to bring a prosecution in respect of an alleged offence in relation to which a vessel is detained shall be made with all due expedition.

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   (6)   The security required in respect of any vessel for the purposes of subsection (4) shall be in such form and reasonable amount, and shall be given by such person, as the Minister may order.

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   (7)   The release of a vessel from detention shall not affect any subsequent forfeiture of the vessel, under section 14(3) or 18(4).

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   (8)   The power under subsection (1) or (2) shall not be exercised in relation to a vessel that is, or in relation to a person who is, entitled to State or other immunity recognised by law.

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   (9)   The powers and rights under this section are in addition to and not in derogation of any other powers and rights which Saint Lucia may have under international law or otherwise.

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   (10)   In the exercise under this section of the power of enforcement against a foreign vessel, an authorised person shall not endanger the safety of navigation or otherwise create any hazard to a vessel, or bring it to an unsafe port or anchorage, or expose the marine environment to an unreasonable risk.

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   (11)   In this section “authorised person” means a person, or a person belonging to a class or description of persons, designated for the purposes of this section by the Minister by order made under this subsection and published in the Gazette; “owner”, in relation to any vessel, includes any body of persons, whether incorporated or not, by whom the vessel is owned, and any charterer or sub-charterer of the vessel.