Cap. 610 чл. 9Freezing of funds.

(1) Where a person (hereinafter referred to as "the person charged") has been charged criminally with being in default of any provision of this Act and upon receiving a request from the Regulator, the Attorney General may where he deems it appropriate request that the Criminal Court issue a written order to any person (hereinafter referred to as a "freezing order") -

(a) attaching in the hands of third parties all moneys and other movable property due or pertaining to the person charged; and

(b) prohibiting the person charged from transferring, pledging, hypothecating or otherwise disposing of any movable or immovable property:

Provided that the Criminal Court shall in such order determine what moneys may be paid to or received by the person charged during the subsistence of such order, specifying the sources, manner and other modalities of payment, including salary, wages, pension and social security benefits payable to the person charged, to allow him and his family a decent living in the amount, where the means permit, of fourteen thousand euro (€14,000) every year or such greater amount as may be determined by the Minister for Finance from time to time by Legal Notice issued by virtue of this Act:

Provided further that the Criminal Court may also -

(a) authorise the payment of debts which are due by the person charged to bona fide creditors and which were contracted before such order was made; and

(b) on good grounds authorise the person charged to transfer movable or immovable property;

Any addressee shall promptly comply with any written order issued by the Criminal Court in accordance with the provisions of this article with regard to such funds and assets.

(2) A freezing order shall:

(a) become operative and binding on all third parties immediately after it is made, and the Registrar of the Court shall cause a notice thereof to be published without delay in the Gazette, and shall also cause a copy thereof to be registered in the Public Registry in respect of immovable property; and

(b) remain in force until the final determination of the administrative or criminal proceedings against the person charged, as the case may be.

(3) The Criminal Court may for particular circumstances vary such freezing order, and the provisions of the foregoing sub-articles shall apply to such order as so varied.

(4) A freezing order shall contain the name and surname of the person charged, his profession, trade or other status, father’s name, mother’s name and maiden surname, place of birth and place of residence and the number of his identity card or other identification document, if any.

(5) Where any money is or becomes due to the person charged from any person while such order is in force, such money shall, unless otherwise directed in the freezing order, be deposited in a bank to the credit of the person charged.

(6) When such freezing order ceases to be in force as provided in sub-article (2)(b), the Registrar of the Court shall cause a notice to that effect to be published in the Gazette, and shall enter in the Public Registry a note of cancellation of the registration of that order.

(7) The Regulator shall liaise with the Attorney General on matters arising under this article and article 7 and may exchange information, subject to the obligation of professional secrecy.