Criminal Code Ordinance 2026Ordinance No. 12 of 2026
Part 1. Preliminary
1. Short title and commencement
This Ordinance may be cited as the Criminal Code Ordinance 2026 and comes into force on the day appointed by notice in the Gazette.
In this Ordinance, references to "this Code" are references to this Ordinance.
2. Interpretation
In this Code, unless the context requires otherwise:
"actual harm" means any hurt or injury that interferes with the health or comfort of a person and is more than transient or trifling;
"adult" means a person aged 18 or over;
"aircraft" means any machine that can derive support in the atmosphere, including a helicopter and an unmanned aircraft;
"ammunition", "firearm" and "prohibited weapon" have the meanings given by sections 2 and 5 of the Firearms and Ammunition Ordinance 2026;
"capital offence" means an offence listed in section 19;
"citizen" means a citizen of Coral Island;
"dwelling" means a building or part of a building in which a person lives, and includes an inhabited vessel or vehicle and any garage or outbuilding belonging to it;
"grievous harm" means serious injury, including injury that endangers life, causes permanent disfigurement, or causes the permanent or long-term loss or impairment of any part or function of the body;
"indictable offence" and "summary offence" have the meanings given by section 15;
"island waters" means the sovereign airspace and waters of Coral Island established by notice under section 4 of the Border Security and Airspace Ordinance 2026;
"property" includes money and every other kind of property, real or personal, including things in action and other intangible property;
"public officer" means:
(a) a police officer or an immigration officer;
(b) a member of the Coral Island Defence Force;
(c) an officer of the Border Security Directorate or of Coastguard Command;
(d) a reef warden or a Coastal and Wildlife Warden;
(e) the Harbour Master or an officer of the Port Authority;
(f) an officer of the Fire and Rescue Service or of the Island Health Clinic;
(g) an inspector of the Coral Island Gaming Commission;
(h) a judge, a magistrate or the Registrar of the Courts; or
(i) any other person employed by the Government, while on duty;
"public place" means any place to which the public, or any section of the public, has access, on payment or otherwise, as of right or by permission, and includes any road, beach, park, car park, the harbour and moorings, and any vehicle, vessel or aircraft in such a place;
"the standard scale" means the standard scale of fines set out in section 14;
"vehicle" means any vehicle designed or adapted for use on land, whether mechanically propelled or not;
"vessel" means any ship, boat or other craft used in navigation on water.
3. Application
(1) This Code applies to every act done, and every omission made, on Coral Island, in island waters, or on board any vehicle, vessel or aircraft while it is on Coral Island or in island waters.
(2) An offence begun outside Coral Island and completed on it, or begun on it and completed outside it, is treated as committed on Coral Island.
(3) Treason under section 44 may be committed by a citizen anywhere, and may be tried on Coral Island wherever the act was done.
(4) Section 52 applies to an escape from custody held under a warrant or order of a court of Coral Island, wherever that custody is held.
4. No punishment without law
(1) No person may be convicted of an offence for an act or omission that was not an offence under the law of Coral Island when it was done.
(2) No person may be given a heavier punishment for an offence than the law allowed when the offence was committed.
(3) No offence created by this Code applies to anything done before 1 October 2026.
(4) No offence created by an ordinance or legal notice made after this Code applies to anything done before that ordinance or legal notice, or the notice appointing the day on which it comes into force, is published in the Gazette.
(5) Ignorance of the law is not an excuse for an offence.
5. Offences under other laws
(1) Parts 2 and 3 apply to offences under every other ordinance and legal notice, as they apply to offences under this Code, unless the law creating the offence provides otherwise.
(2) Where an act is an offence under this Code and under another law, the offender may be prosecuted under either, but may not be punished twice for the same act.
Part 2. Criminal responsibility
6. Fault
(1) Where an offence requires intention, knowledge or recklessness, no person is guilty of it unless the prosecution proves that they acted with that fault.
(2) A person acts intentionally with respect to a result when they act in order to bring it about, or when they know that it will follow in the ordinary course of events.
(3) A person acts knowingly with respect to a circumstance when they are aware that it exists or will exist, or when they deliberately avoid finding out whether it does.
(4) A person acts recklessly with respect to a circumstance or a result when they are aware of a risk that it exists or will occur and, in the circumstances known to them, it is unreasonable to take that risk.
(5) Where the law creating an offence states no fault, the prosecution must prove intention or recklessness as to each element of the offence, unless that law clearly provides otherwise.
7. Parties
(1) A person who commits an offence, whether alone or jointly with others, is a principal.
(2) A person who aids, abets, counsels or procures the commission of an offence is liable to be tried and punished as a principal.
(3) A person may be convicted as a party to an offence even though the principal has not been identified, prosecuted or convicted.
8. Attempts
(1) A person attempts to commit an offence if, intending to commit it, they do an act that is more than merely preparatory to its commission.
(2) A person may be guilty of attempting an offence even though the facts are such that its commission is impossible.
(3) A person who attempts to commit an offence is liable to the same maximum penalty, and is tried in the same way, as for the offence attempted.
(4) An attempt to commit murder or treason is punishable on conviction on indictment by imprisonment for life, and never by death.
9. Conspiracy and encouraging
(1) A person commits conspiracy who agrees with one or more others that a course of conduct will be pursued which, if carried out as they intend, will amount to an offence.
(2) A person commits the offence of encouraging an offence who does an act capable of encouraging or assisting its commission, intending to encourage or assist it, whether or not the offence is committed.
(3) A person convicted of conspiracy or of encouraging an offence is liable to the same maximum penalty, and is tried in the same way, as for the offence in question.
(4) A person convicted of conspiring to commit, or of encouraging, murder or treason is liable on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for life, and never to death.
10. Self-defence and defence of others or property
(1) A person does not commit an offence by using force that is reasonable in the circumstances as they honestly believed them to be, for the purpose of:
(a) defending themselves or another person;
(b) protecting property from being taken, damaged or destroyed;
(c) preventing an offence; or
(d) making or assisting in the lawful arrest of an offender or of a person unlawfully at large.
(2) The belief need not be reasonable, but whether it was reasonable is relevant to whether it was honestly held. A mistaken belief caused by voluntary intoxication is disregarded.
(3) Force intended or likely to cause death or grievous harm is never reasonable for the protection of property alone.
(4) A person is not required to retreat before using force, but whether they had a safe opportunity to do so is relevant to whether the force used was reasonable.
11. Duress and necessity
(1) A person does not commit an offence by an act done because of a threat of death or grievous harm to themselves or another, if a person of reasonable firmness in their situation would have done the same and there was no reasonable opportunity to escape the threat or to seek the protection of a public officer.
(2) A person does not commit an offence by an act done to avoid an imminent danger of death or grievous harm to themselves or another, which they did not create, if the act was reasonable and proportionate to the danger.
(3) Neither defence is available to a person who voluntarily joined in criminal activity with people they knew might threaten them with violence.
(4) Neither defence is available on a charge of murder, attempted murder or treason.
12. Mental disorder and intoxication
(1) A person is not guilty of an offence if, at the time of the act, they were suffering from a mental disorder such that they did not know the nature of the act or did not know that it was wrong.
(2) Where a person is found not guilty by reason of mental disorder, the court may order that they receive care and treatment, in custody or in the community, under the supervision of a medical practitioner of the Island Health Clinic, for a period the court sets and reviews.
(3) A person who would otherwise be guilty of murder is guilty of manslaughter instead where, at the time of the killing, their mental responsibility for it was substantially impaired by a mental disorder but subsection (1) does not apply.
(4) Voluntary intoxication is not a defence. Evidence of it may be taken into account only in deciding whether a person formed an intention that the offence specifically requires, such as the intent for murder or for causing grievous harm with intent.
(5) Intoxication is involuntary where the person did not know, and could not reasonably have known, that they were taking an intoxicant, or took it on medical advice. Involuntary intoxication may be taken into account in deciding whether the person had any fault the offence requires.
13. Lawful authority
(1) An act done in the exercise of a power, or the performance of a duty, conferred or imposed by law is not an offence, if the power is exercised within its limits.
(2) Subsection (1) includes force used by a public officer within the limits in section 14 of the Police Service Ordinance 2026, and the lawful engagement of a craft by the Coral Island Defence Force under section 9 of the Border Security and Airspace Ordinance 2026.
(3) An order from a superior is not by itself a defence. But a public officer who acts on an order that they did not know to be unlawful, and that was not manifestly unlawful, does not commit an offence.
(4) The carrying out of a sentence passed by a court, in accordance with the law, is an act authorised by law.
Part 3. Penalties and sentences
14. The standard scale
(1) The standard scale of fines for offences is as follows.
| Level | Maximum fine |
|---|---|
| Level 1 | $250 |
| Level 2 | $500 |
| Level 3 | $1,000 |
| Level 4 | $2,500 |
| Level 5 | $5,000 |
| Level 6 | $10,000 |
| Level 7 | $25,000 |
(2) A reference in any law to a fine not exceeding a level on the standard scale is a reference to a fine not exceeding the amount shown for that level.
(3) Where a person is convicted on indictment of an offence punishable with a fine, the fine may be of any amount, unless the law creating the offence provides otherwise.
15. Kinds of offence and trial
(1) Every offence is one of the following:
(a) a summary offence, which is triable only in the Magistrates' Court;
(b) an offence triable either way, which may be tried in the Magistrates' Court or on indictment in the Island Court; or
(c) an offence triable only on indictment, which is tried in the Island Court.
(2) An offence is a summary offence where the law creating it provides a penalty only on summary conviction; triable either way where it provides penalties on summary conviction and on conviction on indictment; and triable only on indictment where it provides a penalty only on conviction on indictment.
(3) An "indictable offence" is an offence triable only on indictment or triable either way.
(4) The courts, and the procedure for deciding how an offence triable either way is tried, are set out in sections 3 to 7 and 19 of the Courts and Criminal Procedure Ordinance 2026.
16. General penalty
(1) Where an ordinance or legal notice creates an offence and states no penalty for it, the offence is a summary offence, and a person convicted of it is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 4 on the standard scale, or to imprisonment for 3 months, or to both.
(2) Subsection (1) applies to offences created before or after this Code comes into force, but only where the offence is committed on or after 1 October 2026.
17. Sentences the courts may pass
(1) A court that convicts a person of an offence may, within the limits set by the law creating the offence, pass one or more of the following sentences:
(a) death, only as provided in section 18;
(b) imprisonment for life or for a term;
(c) a fine;
(d) an order to pay compensation;
(e) an order for forfeiture or confiscation;
(f) a community service order;
(g) a conditional or absolute discharge;
(h) disqualification, where a law provides for it; and
(i) for a person who is not a citizen, a recommendation for removal and an entry ban under section 32 of the Courts and Criminal Procedure Ordinance 2026.
(2) Where a law provides a maximum term of imprisonment or a maximum fine, the court may pass any lesser sentence.
(3) The procedure for sentencing, and the limits on the sentencing powers of the Magistrates' Court, are set out in the Courts and Criminal Procedure Ordinance 2026.
18. Sentence of death
(1) A sentence of death may be passed only:
(a) for a capital offence listed in section 19;
(b) by the Island Court, after trial on indictment; and
(c) in accordance with Part 7 of the Courts and Criminal Procedure Ordinance 2026.
(2) A sentence of death is never mandatory. No law may require a court to pass it.
(3) Where a person is convicted of murder or treason and a sentence of death is not passed, the sentence is imprisonment for life, and the court must set, in public, the minimum term the person is to serve.
(4) No sentence of death may be passed on a person who, under section 36 of the Courts and Criminal Procedure Ordinance 2026, may not be sentenced to death.
19. Capital offences
(1) The capital offences are:
(a) murder, under section 20; and
(b) treason, under section 44(1).
(2) No other offence is a capital offence. In particular, attempting, conspiring to commit or encouraging murder or treason, and every offence under section 44(2), are not capital offences.
(3) A capital offence is triable only on indictment in the Island Court.
Part 4. Offences against the person
20. Murder
(1) A person commits murder who unlawfully causes the death of another person, intending to kill, or to cause grievous harm to, that or any other person.
(2) It is enough that the act was a substantial cause of the death, even though the death occurs some time after the act.
(3) A person who commits murder is liable on conviction on indictment to death or to imprisonment for life. Death may be imposed only as provided in section 18.
21. Manslaughter
(1) A person commits manslaughter who unlawfully causes the death of another person without the intent required for murder:
(a) by an unlawful act that any reasonable person would see as likely to cause some harm; or
(b) by gross negligence in breach of a duty of care owed to that person.
(2) A person who would otherwise be guilty of murder is guilty of manslaughter instead where section 12(3) applies.
(3) A person who commits manslaughter is liable on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for life.
22. Causing grievous harm with intent
(1) A person commits an offence who unlawfully causes grievous harm to another person, intending to cause grievous harm to that or any other person, or intending to resist or prevent the lawful arrest of any person.
(2) A person who commits an offence under subsection (1) is liable on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for life.
23. Causing grievous harm
(1) A person commits an offence who unlawfully and recklessly causes grievous harm to another person.
(2) A person who commits an offence under subsection (1) is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 7 on the standard scale, or to imprisonment for 12 months, or to both; or on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 7 years, or to both.
24. Assault causing actual harm
(1) A person commits an offence who assaults another person and by doing so causes them actual harm.
(2) A person who commits an offence under subsection (1) is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 6 on the standard scale, or to imprisonment for 12 months, or to both; or on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 5 years, or to both.
25. Common assault
(1) A person commits common assault who intentionally or recklessly applies unlawful force to another person, or causes another person to fear the immediate application of unlawful force.
(2) In this Code, "assault" means common assault as described in subsection (1).
(3) Force applied with consent in the ordinary course of lawful sport, medical treatment or everyday social contact is not unlawful force.
(4) A person who commits common assault is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 4 on the standard scale, or to imprisonment for 6 months, or to both.
26. Assaulting a public officer
(1) A person commits an offence who assaults a public officer acting in the execution of their duty, or a person assisting such an officer.
(2) A person who commits an offence under subsection (1) is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 6 on the standard scale, or to imprisonment for 12 months, or to both; or on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 3 years, or to both.
27. Threats to kill
(1) A person commits an offence who, without lawful excuse, threatens another person that they will kill that person or a third person, intending that the other person would fear the threat would be carried out.
(2) A person who commits an offence under subsection (1) is liable on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 10 years, or to both.
28. Kidnapping and false imprisonment
(1) A person commits kidnapping who, without lawful authority and without the consent of the other person, takes or carries away another person by force or by fraud.
(2) A person commits false imprisonment who, without lawful authority and without the consent of the other person, intentionally or recklessly detains them or restricts their freedom to leave a place.
(3) A person who commits kidnapping or false imprisonment is liable on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for life.
29. Hostage taking
(1) A person commits hostage taking who seizes or detains another person and threatens to kill, injure or continue to detain them, in order to compel the Government, a public officer or any other person to do, or to refrain from doing, any act.
(2) A person who commits hostage taking is liable on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for life.
Part 5. Sexual offences
30. Consent
(1) For the purposes of this Part, a person consents to an act if they agree to it by choice and have the freedom and capacity to make that choice.
(2) A person does not consent to an act while they are asleep or unconscious, or so intoxicated that they are unable to choose.
(3) Only an adult has the capacity to consent to an act to which this Part applies. A person under 18 does not.
(4) A person does not consent where their agreement is obtained by violence or a threat of violence, or by deceiving them about the nature or purpose of the act or the identity of the other person.
(5) Consent to one act is not consent to any other act, and consent may be withdrawn at any time.
(6) Whether a belief in consent is reasonable is decided having regard to all the circumstances, including any steps the person took to find out whether the other person consented.
31. Rape
(1) A person commits rape who intentionally sexually penetrates another person without their consent and without reasonable belief that they consent.
(2) A person who commits rape is liable on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for life.
32. Sexual assault
(1) A person commits sexual assault who intentionally touches another person sexually, without their consent and without reasonable belief that they consent.
(2) A person who commits sexual assault is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 7 on the standard scale, or to imprisonment for 12 months, or to both; or on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 10 years, or to both.
33. Voyeurism and intimate images
(1) A person commits an offence who observes or records another person doing a private act, without their consent and without reasonable belief that they consent.
(2) A person commits an offence who shares, or threatens to share, a photograph or film showing another person in an intimate state, without their consent and without reasonable belief that they consent.
(3) In this section, a person is doing a private act when they are in a place that would reasonably be expected to provide privacy and are undressed, using a lavatory or engaged in sexual activity; and an image shows a person in an intimate state when it shows them in any of those ways.
(4) A person who commits an offence under this section is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 6 on the standard scale, or to imprisonment for 12 months, or to both; or on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 2 years, or to both.
Part 6. Offences against property
34. Theft
(1) A person commits theft who dishonestly appropriates property belonging to another, intending to deprive the other of it permanently.
(2) Appropriation is any assumption of the rights of an owner, including taking, keeping, using, selling or destroying the property.
(3) A person does not appropriate property dishonestly if they believe that they have a legal right to it, that the owner would consent if they knew of the appropriation and its circumstances, or that the owner cannot be found by taking reasonable steps.
(4) A person who treats property as their own to dispose of regardless of the owner's rights, including by borrowing it for a period and in circumstances equivalent to an outright taking, intends to deprive the owner of it permanently.
(5) A person who commits theft is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 6 on the standard scale, or to imprisonment for 6 months, or to both; or on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 7 years, or to both.
35. Robbery
(1) A person commits robbery who steals and, immediately before or at the time of doing so and in order to do so, uses force on any person, or puts or seeks to put any person in fear of being then and there subjected to force.
(2) A person who commits robbery is liable on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for life.
36. Burglary
(1) A person commits burglary who enters a building or part of a building as a trespasser, intending to steal anything in it, to cause grievous harm to any person in it, or to damage the building or anything in it.
(2) A person also commits burglary who, having entered a building or part of a building as a trespasser, steals or attempts to steal anything in it, or causes or attempts to cause grievous harm to any person in it.
(3) In this section, "building" includes an inhabited vehicle or vessel.
(4) A person who commits burglary of a dwelling is liable on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 14 years, or to both.
(5) A person who commits burglary of any other building is liable on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 10 years, or to both.
37. Taking a vehicle, vessel or aircraft without authority
(1) A person commits an offence who, without the consent of the owner or other lawful authority, takes a vehicle, vessel or aircraft for their own or another's use, or, knowing that it has been so taken, drives it or allows themselves to be carried in or on it.
(2) A person does not commit an offence under this section if they believed that they had lawful authority, or that the owner would have consented had the owner known of the taking and its circumstances.
(3) A person who commits an offence under subsection (1) is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 6 on the standard scale, or to imprisonment for 6 months, or to both; or on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 3 years, or to both.
(4) A court that convicts a person of an offence under this section may also disqualify them from driving under section 16 of the Road Traffic Ordinance 2026.
38. Handling stolen goods
(1) A person commits an offence who, knowing or believing goods to be stolen, dishonestly receives them, or dishonestly undertakes or assists in their keeping, removal, disposal or sale by or for the benefit of another person, or arranges to do so.
(2) Goods are stolen if they were obtained by theft, robbery, burglary, blackmail or fraud, whether on Coral Island or elsewhere. They cease to be stolen when they are restored to the owner or to other lawful possession.
(3) A person who commits an offence under subsection (1) is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 6 on the standard scale, or to imprisonment for 6 months, or to both; or on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 10 years, or to both.
39. Fraud
(1) A person commits fraud who dishonestly, intending to make a gain for themselves or another, or to cause loss to another or expose another to a risk of loss:
(a) makes a false representation, knowing that it is or might be untrue or misleading;
(b) fails to disclose information that they have a legal duty to disclose; or
(c) abuses a position in which they are expected to safeguard, or not to act against, the financial interests of another.
(2) A representation may be express or implied, and may be made to a machine or system as well as to a person.
(3) The gain or loss may be temporary or permanent. It is enough that it was intended; it need not have been made.
(4) A person who commits fraud is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 7 on the standard scale, or to imprisonment for 12 months, or to both; or on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 10 years, or to both.
40. Criminal damage and arson
(1) A person commits criminal damage who, without lawful excuse, destroys or damages property belonging to another, intending to do so or being reckless as to whether it would be destroyed or damaged.
(2) A person commits arson who commits criminal damage by fire.
(3) A person commits criminal damage endangering life who, without lawful excuse, destroys or damages any property, their own or another's, intending by the destruction or damage to endanger the life of another, or being reckless as to whether the life of another would be endangered.
(4) A person has a lawful excuse if they believed that the owner would have consented, or acted to protect property in immediate need of protection by means that were reasonable in the circumstances as they believed them to be.
(5) A person who commits criminal damage, other than arson or criminal damage endangering life, is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 6 on the standard scale, or to imprisonment for 6 months, or to both; or on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 10 years, or to both.
(6) A person who commits arson, or criminal damage endangering life, is liable on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for life.
41. Blackmail
(1) A person commits blackmail who, with a view to gain for themselves or another, or intending to cause loss to another, makes an unwarranted demand with menaces.
(2) A demand with menaces is unwarranted unless the person making it believes that they have reasonable grounds for making it and that the use of the menaces is a proper means of reinforcing it.
(3) A person who commits blackmail is liable on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 14 years, or to both.
42. Money laundering
(1) A person commits money laundering who conceals, disguises, converts or transfers any property, or removes it from Coral Island, knowing or suspecting that it is, or represents, the proceeds of crime.
(2) A person also commits money laundering who enters into, or becomes concerned in, an arrangement that they know or suspect makes it easier for another person to acquire, keep, use or control the proceeds of crime.
(3) The proceeds of crime are any property obtained, directly or indirectly, as a result of conduct that is an offence on Coral Island, or that would be an offence if it took place there.
(4) It is a defence that the person reported their knowledge or suspicion to a police officer before they acted, and acted with the consent of a senior police officer.
(5) A person who commits money laundering is liable on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 14 years, or to both.
43. Going equipped
(1) A person commits an offence who, when not at their place of residence, has with them any article for use in the course of, or in connection with, theft, burglary or an offence under section 37.
(2) Proof that a person had with them an article made or adapted for use in committing one of those offences is evidence that they had it for such use.
(3) A person who commits an offence under subsection (1) is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale, or to imprisonment for 6 months, or to both.
Part 7. Offences against the State
44. Treason
(1) A person who owes allegiance to Coral Island commits treason if they:
(a) levy war, or take up arms, against Coral Island;
(b) assist, by any means, an enemy at war with Coral Island;
(c) use force, or join with others in using force, to overthrow the Government or to take control of Coral Island or any part of it; or
(d) murder the President.
(2) A person who owes allegiance to Coral Island commits an offence who conspires or attempts to do any of the things in subsection (1), or encourages another person to do any of them.
(3) Every citizen, wherever they are, and every other person while they are on Coral Island or in island waters, owes allegiance to Coral Island.
(4) No person may be convicted of an offence under this section on the evidence of one witness, unless that evidence is corroborated in a material particular by other evidence.
(5) Words spoken or written are never, by themselves, treason under subsection (1). The peaceful expression of opinion, including opposition to the Government and advocacy of lawful constitutional change, is never an offence under this section.
(6) A person who commits treason under subsection (1) is liable on conviction on indictment to death or to imprisonment for life. Death may be imposed only as provided in section 18.
(7) A person who commits an offence under subsection (2) is liable on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for life.
45. Terrorist acts
(1) A person commits a terrorist act who uses, or threatens, action involving serious violence against a person, serious damage to property, or a serious risk to the health or safety of the public, where the use or threat is designed to intimidate the public or to compel the Government to act or not to act.
(2) Advocacy, protest, dissent or industrial action that is not intended to cause death, serious violence or a serious risk to public safety is not a terrorist act.
(3) A person who commits a terrorist act is liable on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for life.
46. Espionage
(1) A person commits espionage who, for a purpose prejudicial to the safety of Coral Island, obtains, collects, records, publishes or passes to another person any information about the Coral Island Defence Force, Coral Control or a protected place, which might be useful, directly or indirectly, to an enemy.
(2) In this section, "protected place" means a place declared a protected place under section 3 of the Protected Places and Restricted Areas Ordinance 2026.
(3) A person who commits espionage is liable on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 14 years, or to both.
47. Impersonating a public officer
(1) A person commits an offence who, intending to deceive, falsely claims to be a public officer, wears the uniform or any distinctive badge of a public officer, or shows a warrant card or other document falsely representing them to be one.
(2) It is not an offence under this section to wear an official uniform, or a costume resembling one, in a performance, film or event where no one is intended to be deceived.
(3) A person who commits an offence under subsection (1) is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 6 on the standard scale, or to imprisonment for 6 months, or to both; or on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 2 years, or to both.
Part 8. Public justice and public office
48. Bribery
(1) A person commits bribery who offers, promises or gives an advantage to another person, intending the advantage to induce or reward the improper performance of a public function, or of any function connected with a business or employment.
(2) A person also commits bribery who requests, agrees to receive or accepts an advantage, intending that, as a result, such a function will be performed improperly by them or by another.
(3) A function is performed improperly when it is performed in breach of an expectation that it will be performed in good faith, impartially, or in keeping with a position of trust.
(4) It makes no difference whether the advantage is offered or received directly or through a third party, or whether it is for the benefit of the person performing the function or of another.
(5) A fee prescribed by law and paid in the manner the law prescribes is not an advantage for the purposes of this section.
(6) A person who commits bribery is liable on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 10 years, or to both.
49. Misconduct in public office
(1) A public officer commits misconduct in public office who, acting as such, wilfully neglects to perform their duty, or wilfully abuses their office, to such a degree as to amount to an abuse of the public's trust in the office holder, without reasonable excuse or justification.
(2) A person who commits misconduct in public office is liable on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 10 years, or to both.
50. Perjury
(1) A person commits perjury who, having been lawfully sworn or having made a solemn affirmation as a witness or interpreter in judicial proceedings, wilfully makes a statement material in those proceedings which they know to be false or do not believe to be true.
(2) In this section, "judicial proceedings" includes proceedings before any court or tribunal, and before any person or body having power by law to take evidence on oath.
(3) No person may be convicted of perjury on the evidence of one witness as to the falsity of the statement, unless that evidence is corroborated.
(4) A person who commits perjury is liable on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 7 years, or to both.
51. Perverting the course of justice
(1) A person commits an offence who does any act that tends, and is intended, to pervert the course of public justice.
(2) Acts that may pervert the course of public justice include:
(a) fabricating, concealing or destroying evidence;
(b) threatening, bribing or otherwise interfering with a witness, a juror, a judge, a magistrate or a person who has reported an offence; and
(c) making a false statement to a police officer intending that another person be investigated or charged.
(3) A person who commits an offence under subsection (1) is liable on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 10 years, or to both.
52. Escape
(1) A person commits an offence who, being in lawful custody under arrest, on remand or serving a sentence, escapes from that custody.
(2) A person commits an offence who helps another person to escape from lawful custody.
(3) Lawful custody includes custody in a place designated under section 47 of the Courts and Criminal Procedure Ordinance 2026, whether on Coral Island or elsewhere.
(4) A person who commits an offence under this section is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale, or to imprisonment for 6 months, or to both; or on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 5 years, or to both.
53. Assisting an offender
(1) A person commits an offence who, knowing or believing that another person has committed an indictable offence, does without reasonable excuse any act intended to impede that person's arrest or prosecution.
(2) A person who commits an offence under subsection (1) is liable on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 5 years, or to both.
54. Resisting or obstructing a public officer
(1) A person commits an offence who resists or wilfully obstructs a public officer acting in the execution of their duty, or a person assisting such an officer.
(2) A person who commits an offence under subsection (1) is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 4 on the standard scale, or to imprisonment for 3 months, or to both.
55. False reports
(1) A person commits an offence who knowingly makes, or causes to be made, to a public officer a false report that an offence has been committed, that a person or property is in danger, or that an emergency exists.
(2) A person who commits an offence under subsection (1) is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 4 on the standard scale, or to imprisonment for 3 months, or to both.
Part 9. Public order
56. Riot
(1) Where 12 or more people who are present together use or threaten unlawful violence for a common purpose, and their conduct taken together would cause a person of reasonable firmness present at the scene to fear for their personal safety, each of them who uses unlawful violence for the common purpose commits riot.
(2) It does not matter whether the 12 or more use or threaten violence at the same moment, or whether the common purpose is stated or inferred from their conduct.
(3) No person of reasonable firmness need actually be present at the scene, and riot may be committed in private as well as in public places.
(4) A person who commits riot is liable on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 10 years, or to both.
57. Affray
(1) A person commits affray who uses or threatens unlawful violence towards another person, where their conduct would cause a person of reasonable firmness present at the scene to fear for their personal safety.
(2) For the purposes of this section, a threat cannot be made by words alone.
(3) A person who commits affray is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 6 on the standard scale, or to imprisonment for 6 months, or to both; or on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 3 years, or to both.
58. Threatening behaviour
(1) A person commits an offence who uses threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour towards another person, or displays to them any writing, sign or image that is threatening, abusive or insulting, intending to cause that person to believe that immediate unlawful violence will be used against them or another, or to provoke such violence.
(2) A person who commits an offence under subsection (1) is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale, or to imprisonment for 6 months, or to both.
59. Offensive weapons in public places
(1) A person commits an offence who, without good reason or lawful authority, has with them in a public place:
(a) any article made or adapted for use for causing injury to a person; or
(b) any article that has a blade or is sharply pointed, or any bat, club, bar or tool, which they intend to use to cause injury to a person.
(2) Good reason includes having the article for use at work, for fishing, farming or clearing land, for hunting where hunting is lawful, or for a lawful sport, and taking it to or from a place of work or the place where it was bought.
(3) It is for the person charged to prove, on the balance of probabilities, that they had good reason or lawful authority.
(4) Firearms, ammunition and prohibited weapons are dealt with in the Firearms and Ammunition Ordinance 2026, and this section does not apply to them.
(5) A person who commits an offence under subsection (1) is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 6 on the standard scale, or to imprisonment for 6 months, or to both; or on conviction on indictment to a fine, or to imprisonment for 4 years, or to both.