Companies Act 2014 section 793

Offence of falsifying, concealing, destroying or otherwise disposing of document or record

Section 793 makes it a criminal offence to tamper with, hide, or destroy documents or records that are relevant to an investigation by the Corporate Enforcement Authority.

• It is a category 2 offence to falsify, conceal, destroy or otherwise dispose of a document or record — or to cause or permit someone else to do so — where the person knows or suspects that an Authority investigation is under way or likely, and that the document would be relevant to it.
• If the circumstances are such that it is reasonable to conclude the person knew or suspected an investigation was being or was likely to be carried out, the law presumes that they did in fact have that knowledge or suspicion.
• This presumption can be rebutted if the court or jury is satisfied, having regard to all the evidence, that there is reasonable doubt as to whether the person actually knew or suspected.
• The offence covers both direct actions (personally destroying or altering a document) and indirect actions (causing or permitting another person to do so).

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