Samoa

Investigating Agency: Samoa Police Services Prosecuting Agency: Office of the Attorney General of Samoa (AGO), Samoa Police Prosecution Police Services Act 2009 Investigating Agency: Samoa Police Services Prosecuting Agency: Office of the Attorney General of Samoa (AGO), Samoa Police Prosecution

Crimes Act 2013 Bribing judicial officers (s134(1)) A person is guilty of an offence if he or she:

• corruptly gives or offers or agrees to give any bribe to any person;
• with intent to influence any judicial officer in respect of any act or omission by a judicial officer in his or her judicial capacity.

(s134(2)) A person is guilty of an offence if he or she:

• corruptly gives or offers or agrees to give any bribes to any person;
• with intent to influence any judicial officers or any Registrar or Deputy Registrar of any Court in respect of an act or omission by him or her in his official capacity, not being an act or omission to which subsection (1) applies.

Corruption and bribery of a Minister of the Government of Samoa (s135(2)) A person is guilty of an offence if he or she:

• corruptly gives or offers or agrees to give any bribe to any person;
• with intent to influence any Minister, Associate Minister or CEO of the Government of Samoa in respect of an act or omission by him or her in his or her capacity as a Minister, Associate Minister or CEO[3].

Corruption and bribery of member of Parliament (s136(2)) A person is guilty of an offence if he or she:

• corruptly gives or offers or agrees to give any bribe to any person;
• with intent to influence any Member of Parliament in respect of any act or omission by him or her in his or her capacity as a Member of Parliament[4].

Corruption and bribery of law enforcement officer (s137(2)) A person is guilty of an offence if he or she:

• corruptly gives or offers or agrees to give any bribe to any person;
• with intent to influence any law enforcement officers in respect of any act or omission by the law enforcement officers in his or her

• official capacity.

Corruption and bribery of official (s138(2)) A person is guilty of an offence if he or she:

• corruptly gives or offers or agrees to give any bribe to any person;
• with intent to influence any official in respect of any act or omission by the official in his or her official capacity.

Bribery in Samoa of foreign public official (s150) A person is guilty of an offence if he or she

• corruptly gives or offers or agrees to give a bribe to a person;
• with intent to influence a foreign public official [5] in respect of any act or omission by that official in his or her official capacity in order to obtain or retain business or obtain any improper advantage in the conduct of business[6].

This provision has extraterritorial application (s151). Defences

• The alleged offence was committed for the sole or primary purpose of ensuring or expediting the performance by a foreign public official of a routine government action and the value of the benefit is small.
• The alleged offence under this section was done outside Samoa and was lawful in the foreign country in which the principal office of the person, organisation or other body for whom the foreign public official is employed or otherwise provides services, is situated.

Police Service Act 2009 Bribing member of the Service (s71) A person commits an offence if he or she:

• Is not a member of the Service[7] ; and
• by words, conduct or demeanour bribes[8]  a member of the Service  so as to induce the member to forgo, evade or in any other way act in a manner contrary to the member’s duties under the Police Service Act and any other Act.

Below are the penalties for the offences below. Crimes Act 2013 Bribing judicial officers (s134(1)) – Maximum 7 years imprisonment (s134(2)) – Maximum 7 years imprisonment Corruption and bribery of a Minister of the Government of Samoa (s135(2)) – Maximum 7 years imprisonment Corruption and bribery of member of Parliament (s136(2)) – Maximum 7 years imprisonment Corruption and bribery of law enforcement officer (s137(2)) – Maximum 7 years imprisonment Corruption and bribery of official (s138(2)) – Maximum 7 years imprisonment Bribery in Samoa of foreign public official (s150) – Maximum 7 years imprisonment Police Service Act 2009 Bribing member of the Service (s71) – Maximum 6 months imprisonment or fine not exceeding ST400, or both.