Lall may have committed a criminal offence
–liable for up to $5M fine, three years’ imprisonment

THE public disclosure of a private conversation allegedly occurring between Attorney-General and Minister of Legal Affairs Anil Nandlall and a senior Kaieteur News reporter may have landed the newspaper’s publisher in hot water.Lall released on Monday a 19-minute recording of the conversation, which is reported to have occurred last Saturday, October 25. He used this as the basis for making a report to Deputy Police Commissioner Balram Persaud, alleging that the contents of the recording indicate that his life and those of his family and staff members are under threat. However, questions of the legal framework regulating the widespread public disclosure of the alleged conversation have been raised.

The Interception of Communications Act Chapter 47:03, Act No. 21 of 2008, which addressed the prohibition of interception (Section 3), states that:
“3(1) Except as provided in this section, a person who intentionally intercepts a communication in the course of its transmission by means of a telecommunication system commits an offence, and is liable, on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding five million dollars and to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years.

“(2) A person does not commit an offence under this section if –
“(a) the communication is intercepted in obedience to a warrant issued by a Judge under section 6;
“(b) the communication is not intercepted in obedience to a warrant issued by a Judge but on the authority of a designated officer in the case of a national emergency, or in responding to a case where approval for a warrant is impracticable, having regard to the urgency of the case.

“(3) The court by which a person is convicted of an offence under this section may order that any device used to intercept a communication in the commission of the offence shall be forfeited and disposed of as the court thinks fit.

“(4) For the purpose of subsection (1), a communication shall be taken to be in the course of transmission by means of a telecommunications system at any time when the system by means of which the communication is being or has been transmitted is used for storing the communication in a manner that enables the intended recipient to collect it or otherwise have access to it.”

While Lall has made his report to the police, there is no information on how the recording was made, or how it ended up in his possession. If there were breaches of the law, the Kaieteur News publisher could be looking at a fine of up to $5M, or a jail term of up to three years.