Prevention of Money Laundering Act (Cap. 373), article 3

3. (1) Any person committing any act of money laundering shall be guilty of an offence and shall, on conviction, be liab le to a fine ( multa ) not exceeding two million and five hundred thousand euro (€2,500,000), or to imprisonment for a period not exceedin g eighteen years, or to both such fine and imprisonment: Provided that an act of money laundering shall be aggravated when: (a) the offence was committed within the framework of a criminal organisation within the meaning of Framework Decision 2008/841/JHA; or (b) the offender is an obliged entity within the meaning of Article 2 of Directive (EU) 2015/849 and has committed the offence in the exercise of his professional activities: Provided further that the Co urt may impose any one (1) or more of the following additional sanctions: (a) in the case where an act of money laundering is committed by nat ural persons: (i) the temporary or permanent exclusion from access to public funding, including tender procedures, grants and concessions; (ii) the temporary or permanent disqualification 4 CAP. 373.] PREVENTION OF MONEY LAUNDERING from the practice of commercial activities; (iii) the temporary bans on running for elected or public office; (b) in the case where an act of money laundering is committed by a body of pers ons, whether corporate or unincorporate: (i) the exclusion from entitlement to public benefits or public aid; (ii) the temporary or permanent exclusion from access to public funding, including tender procedures, grants and concessions; (iii) the temporary or permanent disqualification from the practice of commercial activities; (iv) the placing under judicial supervision; (v) its dissolution and winding up; (vi) the temporary or permanent closure of establishments which have been used for committing the offence. (2) Where an offence against the provisions of this Act is committed by a body of persons, whether corporate or unincorporate, every person who, at the time of the commission of the offence, was a director, ma nager, secretary or other simila r officer of such body or association, or was purporting to act i n any such capacity, shall be guilty o f that offence unless he proves that the offence was committed without his knowledge and that he exercised all due diligence to prevent the commission of the offence. Direction by the Attorney General. (2A) (a) Every person charged with an offence of money laundering under this Act shall be tried in the Criminal Court or before the Court of Magistrates (Malta) or the Court of Magistrates (Gozo), as the Attorney General may direct, and if he is f ound guilty shall be liable - (i) on conviction by the Criminal Court to the punishment of imprisonment for a term of not less than four years but not exceeding eighteen years, or to a fine ( multa ) of not less than fifty thousand euro (€50,000) but not exceeding two million and five hundred thousand euro (€2,500,000), or to both such fine and imprisonment; or (ii) on conviction by the Court of Magistrates (Malta) or the Court of Magistrates (Gozo) to the p u n i s h m e n t o f i m p r i s o n m e n t f o r a t e r m o f n o t less than twelve month s but not exceeding nine years, or to a fine ( multa ) of not less than twenty thousand euro ( €20,000) but not exceeding two hundred and fifty thousand euro (€250,000), or to both such fine and imprisonment: Provided that: PREVENTION OF MONEY LAUNDERING [CAP. 373. 5 (i) in giving a direction in accordance with this sub- article the Attorney General shall give due consideration to the age of the offender, the prior conduct of the offender, the value of the property laundered and all the other circumstances of the offence; (ii) where the Attorney Gen eral has directed that the person accused is to be tried in the Criminal Court in accordance with this sub-article, upon t h e t e r m i n a t i o n o f t h e i n q u i r y , i f t h e C o u r t o f Magistrates as a Court of Criminal Inquiry decides that there are sufficient grounds for committing the accused for trial on indictment, the accused may, by appli cation to be filed in the Criminal Court within seven days from the conclusion of inquiry or within seven days from the date on which the accused is served with the bill of indictment, demand the said court to order that he be tried in the Court of Magistrates and the Criminal Court shall, after ordering the service of the application upon the Attorney General and granting him at least seven days to reply and after having heard oral submissions from the accused and the Attorney General if it considers this necessary, decide upon the Court in which the accused is to be tried and the accused shall be tried in accordance with the decision of the Criminal Court: Provided that an application in terms of this sub- paragraph may only be filed once in the course of any proceedings: Provided further that persons who on the date of the coming into force of this sub-paragraph are awaiting trial in the Criminal Court further to a direction given in terms of this sub-article may, notwithstanding the other provisions of this sub- article, file an applica tion in the said court in terms of this sub-paragraph within one month from the said date; (iii) where upon convictio n the accused is liable to the punishment provided in terms of sub- paragraph ( a)(i) of this sub-article and the court competent to sentence the accused is of the opinion that when it takes into account the age of the offender, the prior conduct of the offender, the value of the property laundered and all the other circumstances of the offence, the punishment provided for in sub-paragraph ( a)(i) of this sub-article would not be appropriate, it may, giving reasons apply the punishment provided in sub-paragraph (ii) of this sub-article. (b) Notwithstanding that the Attorney General has 6 CAP. 373.] PREVENTION OF MONEY LAUNDERING directed in accordance with the provisions of paragraph ( a) that a person be tried in the Criminal Court, he may, at any time before the filing of the bill of indictment or at any time after filing the bill of indictment before the jury is empanelled, and with the consent of the accused, direct that that person be tried before the Court of Magistrates, and upon such direction the Court of Magistrates as a court of criminal judicature shall become competent to try that person as if no previous direction had been given. Where the Attorney General has given such new direction after the filing of the bill of indictment, the registrar of the Criminal Court shall cause the record to be transmitted to the Cour t of Magistrates, and shall cause a copy of the Attorney General’s direction to be served on the Comm issioner of Police. Cap. 9. (c) Notwithstanding the provisions of article 370 of the Criminal Code and without prejudice to the provisions of sub-article (2), the Court of Magistrates shall be competent to try offences of money laundering under this Act as directed by the Attorney General in accordance with the provisi ons of this sub-article. Cap. 101. (3) In proceedings for an offen ce of money laundering under this Act the provisions of article 22(1C)( b) of the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance shall mutatis mutandis apply. Cap. 9. (4) Where it is established that an offence of mon ey laundering under this Act was committed by an officer of a body corporate as is referred to in article 121D of the Criminal Code or by a person having a power of representation or having such authority as is referred to in that article and the offence was committed for t he benefit, in part or in whole, of that body corporate, the said person shall for the purposes of this A ct be deemed to be vested with the legal representation of the same body corporate which shall be liable to the punishment laid down in sub-article (1): Provided that where legal representation no longer vests in the said person, for purposes of this article, legal representa tion shall vest in the person occupying the office in his stead or i n such person as is referred to in that article. Cap. 9. (5) ( a) Without prejudice to the provisions of article 23 of the Criminal Code the court shall, in addition to any punishment to which the person convicted of an offence of money laundering under this Act may be sentenced and in addition to any penalty to which a body corporate may become liable under the provisions of sub-article (4), order the forfeiture in favour of the Government of the proceeds or of such property the value of which corresponds to the value of such proceeds whether such pro ceeds have been received by the person found guilty or by the body corporate referred to in the said sub-article (4) and any property of or in the possession or under the control of any person found guilty as aforesaid or of a body corporate PREVENTION OF MONEY LAUNDERING [CAP. 373. 7 as mentioned in this sub-article shall, unless proved to the contrary, be deemed to be derived from the offence of money laundering and liable to confiscation or forfeiture by the court even if in the case of immovable property such property h as since the offender was charged passed into the hands of third parties, and even if the proceeds of property, movable or immovable, are situated in any pl ace outside Malta: Provided that the presumption in this paragraph and any similar presumption in any other law shall not prejudice the power of the Court to vary a freezing order whilst criminal proceedings are pendi ng as provided in article 5: Provided further that, for the purposes of this sub- article, "proceeds" means a ny economic advantage and any property derived from or obtained, directly or indirectly, through criminal activity and includes any income or other benefit derived from such property. Forfeiture of proceeds. Cap. 12. (b) Where the proceeds of the offence have been dissipated or for any other reason whatsoever it is not possible to identify and forfeit those proceeds or to order the forfeiture of such property the value of which corresponds to the value of those proceeds the court shall sentence the person convicted or the body corporate, or the person convicted and the body corporate in solidum , as the case may be, to the payment of a fine ( multa ) which is the equivalent of the amount of the proceeds of the offence. The said f i n e s h a l l b e r e c o v e r a b l e a s a c i v i l d e b t a n d f o r t h i s purpose the sentence of the court shall constitute an executive title for all intents and purposes of the Code of Organization and Civil Procedure . Forfeiture of property derived from criminal activity. (c) Where it is established that the value of the property of the person found guilty of an offence of money laundering under this Act is disproportionate to his lawful income and the court based on specific facts is fully convinced that the property in question has been derived from the criminal activity of that person, that property shall be liable to forfeiture. Cap. 9. (6) Without prejudice to the provisions of article 5 of the Criminal Code , the Maltese courts shall also have jurisdiction over any offence of money laundering under this Act in the same circumstances as are mentioned in article 121C of the Criminal Code. Cap. 9. Cap. 101. (7) (a) The provisions of article 248E(4) and Title IV of Part I II of Book Second of the Criminal Code and those of article 22(3A)( b) and (7) of the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance shall apply mutatis mutandis to the offence of money laundering under this Act. (b) The court shall order the forfeiture in favour of the Government of such moneys or other movable property and such immovable property of the person found guilty of the offence of 8 CAP. 373.] PREVENTION OF MONEY LAUNDERING money laundering which constitute the proceeds of the said offe nce even if the movable or immovable property has since the offende r was charged passed into the hands of third parties and even if the said moneys, movable property or imm ovable property are situated in any place outside Malta. Additional powers of investigation. Amended by: III. 2004.80; XXVIII. 2006.106; L.N. 425 of 2007; XXXI. 2007.45; III. 2015.5; XXVIII. 2017.23; VIII.2020.85; VI.2024.13.