Drug Task Force seized nearly $400,000

Members of the 17th Judicial Circuit Drug Task Force seized nearly $400,000 in cash hidden inside shoes on a passenger bus bound for Mexico.

“We stopped the bus at Exit 2. We got a K9 on the truck. We found three-different passenger suitcases where the money was divided up,” 17th Judicial Circuit Drug Task Force head Clint Sumlin said of the stop that occurred Saturday night at approximately 11:30 in Cuba. “All three passengers denied ownership of the money. We seized it. Then we called customs and they came out and took custody of it. The case is pending further investigation.”

The first seized suitcase contained $86,900 wrapped in cellophane and hidden inside a blanket. The second suitcase held $155,000 stuffed inside hollowed-out shoes. The third suitcase held $145,000 that was also stuffed in hollowed out shoes.

The seizure means the 17th Judicial Circuit Drug Task Force has taken more than $1 million in illegally-obtained cash off the street in 2013.

The 17th Judicial Circuit Drug Task Force was founded in June 2011 by District Attorney Greg Griggers for the purpose of combating the drug problem in local communities.