Commonwealth Consolidated Acts

HISTORIC SHIPWRECKS ACT 1976 - SECT 25

             (1)  An inspector may seize any ship, equipment or article that the inspector reasonably believes to have been used or otherwise involved in the commission of an offence against this Act and may retain the ship, equipment or article until the expiration of a period of 60 days after the seizure or, if a prosecution for an offence against this Act in the commission of which the ship, equipment or article may have been used or otherwise involved is instituted within that period, until the prosecution is terminated.

             (2)  The Minister may authorize any ship, equipment or article seized under subsection (1) to be released to its owner, or to the person from whose possession it was seized, either unconditionally or on such conditions as the Minister thinks fit, including conditions as to the giving of security for payment of its value if it is forfeited.

             (3)  Where a court convicts a person of an offence against this Act, the court may order the forfeiture to the Commonwealth of any ship, equipment or article used or otherwise involved in the commission of the offence.

             (4)  Any ship, equipment or article forfeited under this section may be sold or otherwise dealt with as the Minister thinks fit.

             (5)  A reference in this section to an article involved in the commission of an offence includes a reference to any historic shipwreck, or part of a historic shipwreck, or any historic relic, to which the offence relates.

             (6)  In the section, ship includes a hovercraft and any similar craft.