Section 17 of PMLA : Section 17: Search And Seizure

Explanation using Example

Imagine a situation where the Director of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) receives credible information that Mr. X, a reputed businessman, is involved in a large-scale money laundering operation. The Director believes that Mr. X is converting illegal proceeds from drug trafficking into seemingly legitimate assets.

Acting under Section 17(1) of The Prevention of Money-Laundering Act, 2002, the Director records his reasons in writing and authorizes a Deputy Director to investigate. The Deputy Director, suspecting that Mr. X's office contains records of these illicit activities, leads a team to conduct a search. They find sophisticated accounting ledgers and documents that track the movement of funds from offshore accounts into investments in real estate.

The team, under Section 17(1)(c), seizes these records and, per Section 17(1)(e), makes an inventory of the seized items. They also discover a luxury car bought with the proceeds of crime and, unable to drive it away, decide under Section 17(1A) to freeze the asset by placing a legal notice on it, preventing its sale or transfer.

Following the operation, as required by Section 17(2), the Deputy Director sends a copy of the recorded reasons for the search, along with the seized materials, to the Adjudicating Authority, ensuring that all actions are in line with legal protocols.

This example showcases how Section 17 of The Prevention of Money-Laundering Act, 2002, is applied in practice, allowing authorities to take swift action to investigate and prevent money laundering activities.