26.
| (1) Cash and negotiable bearer instruments seized under subsection (4) of section 24 or section 25 shall not be detained for more than five working days after seizure, unless the High Court for the Western Province holden in Colombo, on application made to it, grants an Order of continued detention for a period not exceeding three months from the date of seizure, upon being satisfied that -
| | (a) there are reasonable grounds to suspect that it was derived from the commission of any unlawful activity or is intended by any person for use in the commission of an offence or in connection with an offence connected with the financing of terrorism under the Convention on the Suppression of Terrorist Financing Act, No. 25 of 2005 ; and | | |
| | (b) its continued detention is justified while its origin or derivation is further investigated. | | |
|
|
| (2) The Court may subsequently Order, after hearing, with notice to parties it determines are relevant, the continued detention of the cash and negotiable bearer instruments if satisfied of the matters mentioned in subsection (1) but the total period of detention shall not exceed two years from the date of the Order. |
|
| (3) Subject to subsection (4), cash and negotiable bearer instruments detained under this section shall be released in whole or in part to the person from whom it was seized or to any person establishing a claim thereto-
| | (a) by Order of a Court that its continued detention is no longer justified and upon application by or on behalf of that person ; | | |
| | (b) by an authorized officer, if satisfied that its continued detention is no longer justified. | | |
|
|
| (4) No cash or negotiable bearer instruments detained under this section shall be released where it is relevant to an investigation, prosecution or proceeding under Prevention of Money Laundering Act, No. 5 of 2006 or the Convention on the Suppression of Terrorist Financing Act, No. 25 of 2005. |
|
| (5) Where the cash or negotiable bearer instruments have not been claimed by any person within one year of it being seized or detained, an authorised officer may make an application to the Court that such cash or negotiable instrument or its equivalent in Sri Lanka rupees upon sale to the Central Bank, as the case may be, be forfeited to the Consolidated Fund. |
|
|
Sri Lanka Consolidated Acts