Tanzania, United Republic of

The Criminal Procedure Act

PART V
INSTITUTION OF PROCEEDINGS

A. - Process to Compel the Appearance of Accused Persons

(b) Warrant of Arrest

110. Notwithstanding the issue of summons, a warrant may be issued at any time before or after the time appointed in the summons for the appearance of the accused but no such warrant shall be issued unless a complaint has been made upon oath or by a police officer or an authorised officer of a local government authority.


111.-(1) If the accused person, other than a corporation, does not appear at the time and place appointed in and by the summons and his personal attendance has not been dispensed with under section 193, the court may issue a warrant to apprehend him and cause him to be brought before it.

(2) If the accused, being a corporation, does not appear in the manner provided for by section 109, the court may cause any officer of the corporation to be brought before it in the manner provided under this Act for compelling the attendance of witnesses.

(3) No warrant of arrest shall be issued under this section unless a complaint has been made on oath or by a police officer or any authorised officer of a local government authority.

(4) Nothing in this section shall affect the power of the court to deal with any case in the absence of the accused, in the manner provided for by section 193, whether the accused is an individual or a corporation.


112.-(1) Every warrant of arrest shall be under the hand of the judge or the magistrate issuing the same and shall bear the seal of the court.

(2) Every warrant shall state shortly the offence with which the person against whom it is issued is charged and shall name or otherwise describe such person, and it shall order the person or persons to whom it is directed to apprehend the person against whom it is issued and bring him before the court issuing the warrant or before some other court having jurisdiction in the case to answer to the charge mentioned in the warrant and to be further dealt with according to law.

(3) Every warrant shall remain in force until it is executed or until it is cancelled by the court which issued it.


113.-(1) Any court issuing a warrant for the arrest of any person in respect of any offence other than murder or treason may, in its discretion, direct by endorsement on the warrant that, if he executes a bond with sufficient sureties for his attendance before the court at a specified time and thereafter until otherwise directed by the court, the officer to whom the warrant is directed shall take such security and shall release him from custody.

(2) The endorsement shall state–

(a) the number of sureties;
(b) the amount in which they and the persons for whose arrest the warrant is issued are to be respectively bound; and
(c) the time at which he has to attend before the court.

(3) Whenever security is taken under this section the officer to whom the warrant is directed shall forward the bond to the court.


114.(1) A warrant of arrest may be directed to one or more police officers, or to one police officer or to all other police officers of the area within which the court has jurisdiction, or generally to all police officers of that area; but any court issuing such a warrant may, if its immediate execution is necessary, and no police officer is immediately available, direct it to an authorised officer of a local government authority within its jurisdiction, or to any other person or persons, and such person or persons shall execute the warrant forthwith.


(2) When a warrant is directed to more officers or persons than one, it may be executed by any one or more than one of them.


115.-(1) Any district or resident magistrate may direct a warrant to any landholder, manager of land or farmer within the local limits of his jurisdiction for the arrest of any escaped convict or person who has been accused of an arrestable offence and has eluded pursuit.

(2) The landholder, manager or farmer shall acknowledge in writing the receipt of the warrant and shall execute it if the person for whose arrest it was issued is in or enters on his land or farm or the land under his charge.

(3) When the person against whom such warrant is issued is arrested, he shall be handed over with the warrant to the nearest police officer, who shall cause him to be taken before a magistrate having jurisdiction unless security is taken under section 113.


116. A warrant directed to any police officer may also be executed by any other police officer whose name is endorsed upon the warrant by the officer to whom it is directed or endorsed.


117. The police officer or other person executing a warrant of arrest shall notify the substance of the warrant to the person to be arrested and if so required, shall show him the warrant.


118. The police officer or other person executing a warrant of arrest shall, without unnecessary delay, and subject to the provisions of section 113 as to security, bring the person arrested before the court before which he is required by law to produce the person and shall return the warrant to the court with an endorsement on it showing the time and manner of execution.


119. A warrant of arrest may be executed at any place within the United Republic of Tanzania.


120.-(1) When a warrant of arrest is to be executed outside the local limits of the jurisdiction of the court issuing it, such court may, instead of directing such warrant to a police officer, forward the same by post or otherwise to any magistrate within the local limits of whose jurisdiction it is to be executed.

(2) The magistrate to whom such warrant is so forwarded shall endorse his name on it and, if practicable, cause it to be executed in the manner provided under this Act within the local limits of his jurisdiction.


121.-(1) When a warrant of arrest directed to a police officer is to be executed outside the local limits of the jurisdiction of the court issuing it, he shall take it for endorsement to a magistrate within the local limits of whose jurisdiction it is to be executed.

(2) The magistrate shall endorse his name on it and the endorsement shall be sufficient authority to the police officer to whom the warrant is directed to execute it within such limits and local police officers shall, if so required, assist the officer in executing that warrant.

(3) Whenever there is reason to believe that the delay to be occasioned by obtaining the endorsement of the magistrate within the local limits of whose jurisdiction the warrant is to be executed will prevent its execution, the police officer to whom it is directed may execute the warrant without the endorsement in any place outside the local limits of jurisdiction of the court which issued it.


122.-(1) When a warrant of arrest is executed outside the local limits of the jurisdiction of the court by which it was issued the person arrested shall, unless the court which issued the warrant is within twenty miles of the place of arrest or is nearer than the magistrate within the local limits of whose jurisdiction the arrest was made or unless security is taken under section 113, be taken before the magistrate within the local limits of whose jurisdiction the arrest was made.

(2) The magistrate shall, if the person arrested appears to be the person intended by the court which issued the warrant, direct the removal in custody to such court.

(3) Subject to subsection (2) if the person has been arrested for an offence other than murder or treason and he is ready and willing to give bail to the satisfaction of the magistrate or if the direction has been endorsed under section 113 on the warrant and the person is ready and willing to give security required by the direction, the magistrate shall take such bail or security, as the case may be, and shall forward the bond to the court which issued the warrant.

(4) Nothing in this section shall be deemed to prevent a police officer from taking security under section 113.


123. Any irregularity or defect in the substance or form of the warrant of arrest and any variance between it and any written complaint or between such complaint and the evidence produced on the part of the prosecution at an inquiry to trial, shall not affect the validity of any proceedings at or subsequent to the hearing of the case, but if any variance appears to the court to be such that the accused has been thereby deceived or misled, the court may, at the request of the accused, adjourn the hearing of the case to some future date and in the meantime remand the accused or admit him to bail.

Keywords

Arrest
Arrest for national proceedings



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