Criminal Justice (Psychoactive Substances) Act 2010

14

Powers of officers of Customs and Excise.

14.— (1) Where an officer of Customs and Excise has reasonable grounds for believing that a person is at any place importing or exporting a psychoactive substance for human consumption, he or she may exercise all the powers available to a member of the Garda Síochána under section 12.

(2) (a) Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (1), where an officer of Customs and Excise who is in—

(i) a public place, or

(ii) any other place under a power of entry authorised by law or to which or in which he or she was expressly or impliedly invited or permitted to be,

with reasonable cause suspects a person of committing or having committed an offence under section 3(2), he or she may exercise all the powers available to a member of the Garda Síochána under section 13.

(b) An officer of Customs and Excise may, for the purpose of conducting a search of a person under section 13, require the person to accompany him or her to a customs office or to such other place as may be specified by the officer for that purpose.

(3) Without prejudice to the generality of subsections (1) and (2), an officer of Customs and Excise may seize and detain any thing which he or she with reasonable cause suspects is being imported or exported in contravention of section 3 (2) and may for that purpose open any packet (including any postal packet) or container containing, or which he or she suspects of containing, a psychoactive substance.