Power of police officer to detain and search
15.—(1) The powers under sub-section (2) may be exercised by a police officer who has reason to suspect that any article —
(a) has been stolen or unlawfully obtained; or
(b) is one in respect of which a criminal offence has been, is being, or is about to be, committed; and
(c) which is being conveyed on any person or in any vehicle or in any package, or is otherwise being conveyed; or
(d) which is concealed or contained in any vehicle or package, for the purpose of being conveyed; or
(e) which is concealed or carried on any person in a public place.
(2) On the grounds stated in sub-section (1), a police officer may, without warrant or other written authority —
(a) detain and search any such person, vehicle or package; and
(b) take possession of and detain any such article (together with the package containing it, if any)
which the police officer reasonably suspects –
(i) to have been stolen or unlawfully obtained; or
(ii) in respect of which the police officer reasonably suspects that a criminal offence has been, is being, or is about to be committed; and
(c) detain the person conveying, concealing or carrying the article.
(3) The powers provided for in sub-section (2) shall not be exercised in the case of any article being conveyed by post, except where the posted article has been, or is suspected of having been, dishonestly appropriated during its transit as a posted item.
(4) If there is reason to suspect that there is on board any vessel or aircraft any property that has been stolen or unlawfully obtained, a police officer of or above the rank of sergeant, may –
(a) enter, without warrant and with or without assistants, on board such vessel;
(b) remain on board for such reasonable time as the officer considers necessary;
(c) search, with or without assistance, any part of such vessel;
(d) after demand and refusal of keys, break open any receptacle;
(e) upon discovery of any property which the officer reasonably suspects to have been stolen or unlawfully obtained, take possession of and detain the property;
(f) detain the person in whose possession any property detained under paragraph (e) is found; and

(g) pursue and detain any person who is in the act of conveying any such property away from any vessel, or after the person has landed with the property so conveyed away or found in his or her possession.
(5) A police officer may seize any articles in a public place —
(a) which may furnish evidence in regard to the commission of such offence; and
(b) where there is a possibility of the articles being removed or dealt with in such a way as to prevent their being available as evidence.
(6) All persons detained under this section shall be dealt with in accordance with the procedures applying to persons arrested without a warrant.
Searches to be undertaken by officers of the same gender
16. —(1) All searches of arrested persons shall be conducted only by police officers of the same gender as the arrested person.
(2) In any situation where there is no police officer of the same gender as the person to be searched available to do the search, arrangements may be made for the search to be conducted by a suitable person of the same gender.
(3) In all cases searches shall be undertaken with strict regard to decency.

Power to seize offensive weapons
17. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Decree, a police officer or other person making any arrest in accordance with this Decree may take from the person arrested any instruments of violence, and shall deliver all articles so taken to the police officer before whom the police officer or person making the arrest is required to produce the person arrested.

''Part III - ASSISTANCE IN RELATION TO SEARCH AND SEIZURE''

12. Requests by Fiji for search and seizure
(1) This section applies to a proceedings or investigation relating to a criminal matter involving a serious offence against the law of Fiji if there are reasonable grounds to believe that a thing relevant to the proceeding or investigation may be located in a foreign country.
(2) If this section applies to a proceedings or investigation, the Attorney-General may request the appropriate authority of the foreign country -
(a) to obtain a warrant or other instrument that, in accordance with the law of the foreign country, authorises -
(i) a search for a thing relevant to the proceedings or investigation; and
(ii) if the thing, or any other thing that is or may be relevant to the proceedings or investigation is found as a result of the search, the seizure of that thing.
(3) If the appropriate authority of the foreign country has obtained any thing relevant to the proceedings or investigation by means of a process authorised by the law of that country other than the issue (as requested by Fiji) of a warrant or other instrument authorising the seizure of the thing, the thing -
(a) is not inadmissible in evidence in the proceedings, or
(b) is not precluded from being used for the purposes of the investigation, on the ground alone that it was obtained otherwise than in accordance with the request.

13. Requests by foreign countries for search and seizure
(1) Where -
(a) a proceedings or investigation relating to a criminal matter involving a serious offence has commenced in a foreign country;
(b) there are reasonable grounds to believe that a thing relevant to the investigation or proceedings is located in Fiji; and
(c) the foreign country requests the Attorney-General to arrange for the issue of a search warrant under this section in relation to that thing, the Attorney-General may, in writing, authorise a police officer to apply to a Magistrate for the search warrant requested by the foreign country.
(2) A police officer authorised under subsection (1) may apply to a Magistrate for the issue of a warrant to search land or premises for the things to which the request relates in the same way as a police officer may apply for the issue of a search warrant under Part IV of the Criminal Procedure Code.
(3) Where an application is made under subsection (2) for a warrant to search land or premises in Fiji for a thing relevant to an investigation or proceedings in a foreign country, the Magistrate may issue a warrant of the kind in the same manner, and subject to the same conditions, as the Magistrate could issue a search warrant under Part IV of the Criminal Procedure Code and, subject to this Part, the warrant may be executed in the same manner as if it has been issued under the Criminal Procedure Code.
(4) If, in the course of searching, under a warrant issued under this section, for a thing of a kind specified in the warrant, the police officer finds another thing that the police officer believes on reasonable grounds -
(a) to be relevant to the proceedings or investigation in the foreign country or to afford evidence as the commission of a Fiji criminal offence, and
(b) is likely to be concealed, lost or destroyed if it is not seized, the warrant is deemed to authorise the police officer to seize the other thing.
(5) Where the police officer finds, as a result of a search in accordance with a warrant issued under this section, a thing which the police officer seizes wholly or partly because the police officer believes the thing on reasonable grounds to be relevant to the proceeding or investigation in the foreign country, the police officer shall deliver the thing into the custody and control of the Commissioner of Police.
(6) Where a thing is delivered into the custody and control of the Commissioner, of Police under subsection (5), the Commissioner of Police shall without delay inform the Attorney-General that the thing has been so delivered and arrange for the thing to be kept pending a direction in writing from the Attorney-General as to the manner in which the thing is to be dealt with (which may include a direction that the thing be sent to an authority of a foreign country).

''Part III - ASSISTANCE IN RELATION TO SEARCH AND SEIZURE, 13. Requests by foreign countries for search and seizure''
(1) Where -
(a) a proceedings or investigation relating to a criminal matter involving a serious offence has commenced in a foreign country;
(b) there are reasonable grounds to believe that a thing relevant to the investigation or proceedings is located in Fiji; and
(c) the foreign country requests the Attorney-General to arrange for the issue of a search warrant under this section in relation to that thing, the Attorney-General may, in writing, authorise a police officer to apply to a Magistrate for the search warrant requested by the foreign country.
(2) A police officer authorised under subsection (1) may apply to a Magistrate for the issue of a warrant to search land or premises for the things to which the request relates in the same way as a police officer may apply for the issue of a search warrant under Part IV of the Criminal Procedure Code.
(3) Where an application is made under subsection (2) for a warrant to search land or premises in Fiji for a thing relevant to an investigation or proceedings in a foreign country, the Magistrate may issue a warrant of the kind in the same manner, and subject to the same conditions, as the Magistrate could issue a search warrant under Part IV of the Criminal Procedure Code and, subject to this Part, the warrant may be executed in the same manner as if it has been issued under the Criminal Procedure Code.
(4) If, in the course of searching, under a warrant issued under this section, for a thing of a kind specified in the warrant, the police officer finds another thing that the police officer believes on reasonable grounds -
(a) to be relevant to the proceedings or investigation in the foreign country or to afford evidence as the commission of a Fiji criminal offence, and
(b) is likely to be concealed, lost or destroyed if it is not seized, the warrant is deemed to authorise the police officer to seize the other thing.
(5) Where the police officer finds, as a result of a search in accordance with a warrant issued under this section, a thing which the police officer seizes wholly or partly because the police officer believes the thing on reasonable grounds to be relevant to the proceeding or investigation in the foreign country, the police officer shall deliver the thing into the custody and control of the Commissioner of Police.
(6) Where a thing is delivered into the custody and control of the Commissioner, of Police under subsection (5), the Commissioner of Police shall without delay inform the Attorney-General that the thing has been so delivered and arrange for the thing to be kept pending a direction in writing from the Attorney-General as to the manner in which the thing is to be dealt with (which may include a direction that the thing be sent to an authority of a foreign country).

''Part VI-PROCEEDS OF CRIME, Division 2 - Requests by foreign countries, 32. Requests for search and seizure warrants in respect of tainted property''
Where-
(a) a criminal proceedings or investigation has commenced in a foreign country in respect of a serious offence;
(b) there are reasonable grounds to believe that tainted property in relation to the offence is located in Fiji; and
(c) the foreign country requests the Attorney-General to obtain the issue of a search warrant in relation to the tainted property,
the Attorney-General may, in writing, authorise a police officer to apply to a Magistrate under section 103 of the Criminal Procedure Code for a search warrant in relation to that tainted property.