R v Mitric

The appeal concerned an application by the appellant, R v Mitric, to the Full Court of the Supreme Court of South Australia, challenging an order made by a sentencing judge. The dispute centred on the confiscation of a sum of money, $2,120.00, which the sentencing judge had determined to be the proceeds of serious offences.

The primary legal issue before the Full Court was whether the sentencing judge had erred in ordering the forfeiture of the $2,120.00. Specifically, the court was required to determine if the evidence presented at sentencing had established, on the balance of probabilities, that this sum constituted the proceeds of a serious offence of which the appellant had been convicted, as required by section 47(1)(a) of the Criminal Assets Confiscation Act 2005 (SA).

The Full Court reasoned that the sentencing judge's finding that the $2,120.00 was the proceeds of past uncharged trafficking meant it could not be forfeited under section 47(1)(a) of the Act, which mandates a conviction for the serious offence. The court held that for such a sum to be forfeited, it would need to be subject to a restraining order or an application made under section 95 of the Act. Consequently, the appeal was allowed to the extent that the order forfeiting the $2,120.00 was set aside.