85. Damage to public telecommunication or postal licensees’ installation or plant

Any person who wilfully removes, destroys or damages any installation or plant used for telecommunications or for posts shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $10,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years or to both.

Notwithstanding subsection (1), any person who damages or suffers to be damaged any cable of a telecommunication system belonging to or under the management or control of a public telecommunication licensee shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $200,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years or to both.

Where an offence under subsection (2) is committed by any person acting as the agent or employee of another person, or being otherwise subject to the supervision or instructions of another person for the purposes of any employment in the course of which the offence was committed, that other person shall without prejudice to the liability of the first-mentioned person, be liable under that subsection in the same manner and to the same extent as if he had personally committed the offence unless he proves to the satisfaction of the court that the offence was committed without his consent or connivance or that it was not attributable to any neglect on his part.

In any proceedings for an offence under subsection (2), it shall be a defence for the person charged to prove that he took all reasonable precautions and exercised all due diligence to avoid the commission of the offence.