Arrest, Search, Seizure, Warrant Police Confiscated Money!

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MagicalMegs12

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Two months ago- my boyfriend's best friend (who is in the military, based in California) came home on leave. He brought a turbo-kit he had purchased awhile back (i think he had used it on his bike previously) & installed it on my boyfriend's bike & also rebuilt the bike. The turbo-kit was worth 4k and he paid his friend $1500 in labor considering the extensive amount of mechanical work that was done. He didn't have all the money at the time it was done.

He sent the full amount a week ago through Fed-Ex because his friend is super paranoid about being audited by the IRS for some reason LOL. Anyway- he gets a call the next day saying that the money had been confiscated by the local metro police department. They say its suspicious of being involved with narcotics because it is over 5k. My boyfriend and his friend explained the whole story to the detective, but he said the prosecutor wants to take it to court so that my boyfriend can prove the police suspicions are incorrect. The cop keeps saying he will get back to us but keeps giving the excuse that he has to talk to the prosecutor. It is hard to get any information about this "case".

What can he do? Can he get the money back without having to go to court? What kind of proof does he need if he does go to court? He doesn't think his friend will be able to find the receipt from the turbo-kit he purchased. Other than that- the rest of the transactions are under-the-table because they can do there own mechanic work & don't need to go to an actual mechanic shop. Any insight would be greatly appreciated! We want to get the money back because its a lot - and we don't want to get pulled around by the courts.
 
If you ever want see a dime if that money, hire a lawyer.

Otherwise, they'll confiscate it for their war on drugs.

The state has to prove their case.

Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court proceeding.

You should have said nothing to anyone, especially the police.

They'll twist and turn everything you said against you to make you appear guilty!!!

You don't have to prove how or why you were sent that money.

The more you talk, the guiltier you look.

They claim it is drug money, make them prove it!!

If they can't or don't, you get it back.

So far you've only managed to concoct a tortured story about an under the table auto repair scam.

That won't help you.

You need to STFU and hire a lawyer.

Even a lawyer may be unable to rehabilitate you after the tale that has been spun.

Speak with a good criminal defense lawyer that has defended drug suspects successfully.
 
You don't have to prove how or why you were sent that money.
Click to expand...

They did not receive the money, they sent the money. Why they used FedEx and not Western Union makes no sense. Yet, I also wonder why and how it was confiscated as a potential drug money operation. Unless there was some prior activity and the boyfriend was being watched, a simple FedEx box would not draw attention.

Something is missing from this story. To the best of my knowledge there is no crime to send money by mail or FedEx, though very stupid.
 
Let's put it this way, your friend is being investigated for selling drugs and you most likely are being investigated for selling or buying drugs now. The burden of proof is on the prosecution to confiscate the money not on you. However, there is a lot more going on here than you know, or than you are telling us about. Hire a lawyer, you are going to need one soon.
 
PS: Your friend is "paranoid" about being audited by the IRS because he is doing something illegal and I suspect you know that. At very least he is committing tax evasion, at worst he is dealing drugs.
 
One more thing guys! I would like a reply to this if someone has some answers. I'm not asking you to verify my story or believe it or whatever. I'm also not asking your opinion about how stupid it is to ship money in the mail (believe me I know & if it was my money I wouldn't do it).

Here are the important facts:
Money was sent through Fed-Ex. That money was sniffed out by a dog. Confiscated by the police because they flag everything over 5g as potential narcotic activity. Both people involved have a squeaky clean record.

What I want to know is:
Do the people (sender & receiver) involved have any sort of burden of proof laid on them?
If the cop says it may have to go to court to get the money back- how will the prosecutor prove its for narcotics if all they have is an amount of 5k thats "suspicious"?
How would they defend themselves against potential shady police activity?
**Who do we contact to get information about this "case" because the cop is working off of a cell phone only, never returns calls, sounds half retarded, & is less than formal - it seems kinda shady!

Help Please!
 
Possession of cash or transportation of cash is not a crime. You do not have to prove anything about the cash unless you are crossing International lines. I'm not commenting on anything except that I'm telling you that it wasn't a money sniffing dog that you are dealing with; there is a drug investigation on your friend and they are looking for you to snitch. You could have 100k and they have no right to confiscate it and make you prove where it came from or where it is going. It is legal tender for public and private debt. I personally have carried a hundred thousand in cash a time or two. It isn't an issue. It can be dumb if you don't have security but it isn't a crime and they sure can't seize it and make you explain it.
 
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Did they give you any statutory authority for the cash seizure? I would like to look up the code if you will give it to me.
 
What does statutory authority mean?(sorry I don't know anything about this stuff) He doesn't have a code- like I said he has very little information. Should he call and get the code?
 
I pulled this from US v 124,700 in US Currency 458 F2d. 822 (8th Cir 2006)

Since the enactment of the Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Act of 2000,
the burden is on the government to establish, by a preponderance of the
evidence, that seized property is subject to forfeiture.
18 U.S.C. § 983(c)(1). Forfeiture is warranted under 21 U.S.C. § 881 when
the government establishes a "`substantial connection' between the
property" and a controlled substance offense. 18 U.S.C. § 983(c)(3). We
review any predicate factual findings for clear error, but the ultimate
conclusion as to whether those facts establish a "substantial connection"
between seized currency and a narcotics transaction is a mixed question
of law and fact that we review de novo. See United States v. Dodge
Caravan Grand SE/Sport Van, 387 F.3d 758, 761 (8th Cir. 2004); United
States v. $84,615 in U.S. Currency, 379 F.3d 496, 501 (8th Cir. 2004);
see also United States v. $117,920.00 in U.S. Currency, 413 F.3d 826, 829
(8th Cir. 2005).

****I think this crap is ridiculous but the government is really trying to crack down on drugs. If your story is true though they need more than just money to connect the cash to drugs. The dog might have alerted to drugs but money isn't illegal.
 
Ok, how do you know that your money was taken from Fed ex? His word? Or did someone contact you?
 
He checked the tracking information on the Fed-Ex website & it said signed for by det from police department. He contacted Fed-Ex & they gave him the # to contact the detective
 
MagicalMegs12 said:
Oh and the only reason it is suspicious for being connected with narcotics is because they flag everything that is 5k and up.
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Mr Bigstuff and the Money Sting!!!​

Mr. Bigstuff might say, "I don't know nothing about no stinking money!"
Mr. Bigstuff, continues, "Take the money, dude, it wasn't mine."
Mr. Bigstuff listened to his attorney and never was charged for a similar offense.
Mr. Bigstuff didn't talk until he contacted a certain attorney about the ridiculous accusation.
Mr. Bigstuff's attorney told the AUSA to charge his client and prove the charges.
The AUSA knew he'd have to prove that Mr. Bigstuff had to have knowledge of the the alleged transaction to be convicted.
Mr. Bigstuff's attorney said, "Go ahead, indict Mr. Bigstuff. Mr. Bigstuff will aggressively defend his rights."
The AUSA kept the money, that the jackbooted federales, no doubt, planted to entrap Mr. Bigstuff.
Mr. Bigstuff remains a free man to this very day!
Mr. Bigstuff knew about his right to remain silent.
Mr. Bigstuff and never speaks to the police about anything.
Mr. Bigstuff knows the police put people away that talk to them!
Yeah, Mr. Bigstuff, may have lost THAT money.
(Money that wasn't his anyway, need I remind you?)
But, Mr. Bigstuff, didn't lose his freedom.

MR. BIGSTUFF KNOWS THAT THE ONLY THING YOU EVER TELL THE POLICE IS YOUR NAME, ADDRESS, DATE OF BIRTH, AND IMMEDIATELY INVOKE YOUR RIGHT TO REMAIN SILENT AND SPEAK WITH YOUR ATTORNEY!

YOU SHOULD NEVER TRY TO EXPLAIN ANYTHING TO THE POLICE.

YOU SHOULD NEVER TELL YOUR SIDE OF ANYTHING TO THE POLICE.

YOUR CASE IS BEST LITIGATED IN THE COURTROOM, NOT IN A POLICE INTERROGATION ROOM.

YOU NEVER TALK YOUR WAY OUT OF PRISON, BUT YOU'LL SURE AS HECK TALK YOUR SELF INTO PRISON!!!
 
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Can I ask a stupid question? Have you checked the tracking number with FED EX to see where the package is? Because, till it is delivered, it belongs to you. Something stinks.
 
jharris352 said:
Can I ask a stupid question? Have you checked the tracking number with FED EX to see where the package is? Because, till it is delivered, it belongs to you. Something stinks.
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Isn't that assuming they sent the package?

A wise person wouldn't know anything about this package at this point.


Package, what package?

I don't know nothing about no stinking package.
 
This isn't right at all.
The police can't take that package. They wouldn't know how much money was in it until AFTER they opened it, so until then there would be no reasonable suspicion.
If the package was intercepted and opened as claimed here then I would expect some detective somewhere has his butt in a bind and YOU should be talking to an attorney since it was a violation of YOUR rights.
If there was suspicion then a warrant would have been necessary to open the package. Otherwise they should have asked your friend to open it in their presence, which he could have refused to do.

You either have a nice payout coming your way (if you get things in order and follow through) or you don't have all the correct information about how things went down.

You should talk to Fed-Ex and get an explanation of how a police detective took possession of the package you sent. Fed-Ex may be on the hook for something here too.

Until your friend actually gets that money, you still owe it to him.... and YOU are the one that is the victim here.
 
can someone share their thoughts on my thread titled "Failure to turn" ? Anyway to beat this ticket?

Sorry to use this thread for my use. I tried to post my thread link but its blocked because I am beginner on this forum. THank you.
 
Just a thought. Is it plausible that drug residue was on the FedEx package and this is what was sniffed out by the dog? Upon opening the package the $5,000 was found. The money plus the residue would suggest drug trafficking. This would explain why the money was confiscated.
 
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