Joint Investigation Teams (EU Member States) Regulations, 2012

L.N. 187 of 2012

CRIMINAL CODE

(CAP. 9)

Joint Investigation Teams (EU Member States) Regulations, 2012

IN EXERCISE of the powers conferred by article 628A of the

Criminal Code, the Minister for Justice, Dialogue and the Family, has

made the following regulations:-

The title of these regulations is the Joint Investigation Citation.

Teams (EU Member States) Regulations, 2012.

In these regulations, unless the context otherwise requires

Interpretation.

"the Convention" means the Convention established by the

Council in accordance with Article 34 of the Treaty on European

Union, on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters between the

Member States of the European Union;

"member" shall include prosecutors and law enforcement

officials;

"seconded member" means a member of the joint investigation

team from Member States other than the Member State in which the

team operate;

"the European Union" means the European Union as referred to

in the Treaty;

"the Treaty" shall have the same meaning assigned to it by

article 2 of the European Union Act.

(1)

Notwithstanding anything contained in any other Setting up of

law, it shall be lawful for the Attorney General to authorise the setting joint

investigation

up of a joint investigation team to carry out investigations into teams.

criminal offences in one or more of the Member States setting up the

team in terms of the Convention.

(2) The joint investigation team, the composition of which

shall be set out in the agreement setting it up, shall be set up for a

specific purpose and a limited period, which may be extended by

mutual consent, to carry out criminal investigations in one or more of

the Member States setting up the team.

(3) Seconded members of the joint investigation team shall be

entitled to be present when investigative measures are taken in the

Member State of operation.

(4) Seconded members of the joint investigation team may, in

accordance with the law of the Member State where the team

operates, be entrusted by the leader of the team with the task of taking

certain investigative measures where this has been approved by the

competent authorities of the Member State of operation and the

seconding Member State.

(5) Where the joint investigation team needs investigative

measures to be taken in a Member State setting up the team, members

seconded to the team by that Member State may request their own

competent authorities to take those measures and those measures shall

be considered, in that Member State, under the conditions which

would apply if they were requested in a national investigation.

(6) Where the joint investigation team needs assistance from a

Member State other than those which have set up the team, or from a

third State, the request for assistance may be made by the competent

authorities of the State of operations to the competent authorities of

the other State concerned in accordance with the relevant instruments

or arrangements.

(7) A member of the joint investigation team may, in

accordance with his national law and within the limits of his

competence, provide the team with information available in the

Member State which has seconded him for the purpose of the criminal

investigations conducted by the team.

(8) Information lawfully obtained by a member or seconded

member while part of a joint investigation team which is not

otherwise available to the competent authorities of the Member States

concerned may be used for the following purposes

(a)

for the purposes for which the team has been set

up;

(b)

subject to the prior consent of the Member State

where the information became available, for detecting,

investigating and prosecuting other criminal offences;

(c)

for preventing an immediate and serious threat to

public security and, without prejudice to the provisions of

paragraph (b), if subsequently a criminal investigation is

opened;

(d)

for other purposes to the extent that this is agreed

between Member States setting up the team.

€0.18