Piracy and Offences Against Air and Marine Safety

This page was last substantively updated or reviewed January 2014. (Rev. # 95871)

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Legislation

Piracy by law of nations

74 (1) Every one commits piracy who does any act that, by the law of nations, is piracy.

Punishment

(2) Every one who commits piracy while in or out of Canada is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for life.
R.S., c. C-34, s. 75; 1974-75-76, c. 105, s. 3.

– CCC (CanLII), (DOJ)

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Piratical acts

75. Every one who, while in or out of Canada,

(a) steals a Canadian ship,

(b) steals or without lawful authority throws overboard, damages or destroys anything that is part of the cargo, supplies or fittings in a Canadian ship,

(c) does or attempts to do a mutinous act on a Canadian ship, or

(d) counsels a person to do anything mentioned in paragraph (a), (b) or (c),

is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding fourteen years.
R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 75; R.S., 1985, c. 27 (1st Supp.), s. 7.

– CCC (CanLII), (DOJ)

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Offences against Air or Maritime Safety

Hijacking

76. Every one who, unlawfully, by force or threat thereof, or by any other form of intimidation, seizes or exercises control of an aircraft with intent

(a) to cause any person on board the aircraft to be confined or imprisoned against his will,

(b) to cause any person on board the aircraft to be transported against his will to any place other than the next scheduled place of landing of the aircraft,

(c) to hold any person on board the aircraft for ransom or to service against his will, or

(d) to cause the aircraft to deviate in a material respect from its flight plan,

is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for life.

1972, c. 13, s. 6.

– CCC (CanLII), (DOJ)

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Endangering safety of aircraft or airport

77. Every one who

(a) on board an aircraft in flight, commits an act of violence against a person that is likely to endanger the safety of the aircraft,

(b) using a weapon, commits an act of violence against a person at an airport serving international civil aviation that causes or is likely to cause serious injury or death and that endangers or is likely to endanger safety at the airport,

(c) causes damage to an aircraft in service that renders the aircraft incapable of flight or that is likely to endanger the safety of the aircraft in flight,

(d) places or causes to be placed on board an aircraft in service anything that is likely to cause damage to the aircraft, that will render it incapable of flight or that is likely to endanger the safety of the aircraft in flight,

(e) causes damage to or interferes with the operation of any air navigation facility where the damage or interference is likely to endanger the safety of an aircraft in flight,

(f) using a weapon, substance or device, destroys or causes serious damage to the facilities of an airport serving international civil aviation or to any aircraft not in service located there, or causes disruption of services of the airport, that endangers or is likely to endanger safety at the airport, or

(g) endangers the safety of an aircraft in flight by communicating to any other person any information that the person knows to be false,

is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for life.

R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 77; 1993, c. 7, s. 3.

– CCC (CanLII), (DOJ)

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Offensive weapons and explosive substances

78 (1) Every one, other than a peace officer engaged in the execution of his duty, who takes on board a civil aircraft an offensive weapon or any explosive substance

(a) without the consent of the owner or operator of the aircraft or of a person duly authorized by either of them to consent thereto, or

(b) with the consent referred to in paragraph (a) but without complying with all terms and conditions on which the consent was given,

is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding fourteen years.

Definition of “civil aircraft”

(2) For the purposes of this section, “civil aircraft” means all aircraft other than aircraft operated by the Canadian Forces, a police force in Canada or persons engaged in the administration or enforcement of the Customs Act, the Excise Act or the Excise Act, 2001.

R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 78; R.S., 1985, c. 1 (2nd Supp.), s. 213; 2002, c. 22, s. 325.

– CCC (CanLII), (DOJ)

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Seizing control of ship or fixed platform

78.1 (1) Every one who seizes or exercises control over a ship or fixed platform by force or threat of force or by any other form of intimidation is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for life.

Endangering safety of ship or fixed platform

(2) Every one who

(a) commits an act of violence against a person on board a ship or fixed platform,

(b) destroys or causes damage to a ship or its cargo or to a fixed platform,

(c) destroys or causes serious damage to or interferes with the operation of any maritime navigational facility, or

(d) places or causes to be placed on board a ship or fixed platform anything that is likely to cause damage to the ship or its cargo or to the fixed platform,

where that act is likely to endanger the safe navigation of a ship or the safety of a fixed platform, is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for life.

False communication

(3) Every one who communicates information that endangers the safe navigation of a ship, knowing the information to be false, is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for life.

Threats causing death or injury

(4) Every one who threatens to commit an offence under paragraph (2)(a), (b) or (c) in order to compel a person to do or refrain from doing any act, where the threat is likely to endanger the safe navigation of a ship or the safety of a fixed platform, is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for life.

Definitions

(5) In this section,
...
"fixed platform" means an artificial island or a marine installation or structure that is permanently attached to the seabed for the purpose of exploration or exploitation of resources or for other economic purposes;

...
"ship" means every description of vessel not permanently attached to the seabed, other than a warship, a ship being used as a naval auxiliary or for customs or police purposes or a ship that has been withdrawn from navigation or is laid up.

1993, c. 7, s. 4.

– CCC (CanLII), (DOJ)

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