TRAFFIC STOP YIELDS $2.7 MILLION IN CASH

TUSCALOOSA -- Sheriff's deputies seized $2.7 million during a traffic stop
on Interstate 20/59 on Jan. 16, one of the largest cash seizures ever made
in the state, Sheriff Ted Sexton said.

Tuscaloosa County sheriff's deputies working with officers from the Villa
Rica, Ga., police department on a traffic detail discovered the cash after
stopping a car near mile marker 58 near the Greene County line. The money
was found in luggage in the vehicle.

The money was turned over to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the
federal agency investigating the source of the money.

Charges have not been filed against the 38-year-old driver, Sexton said.
Authorities did not release details about the cash seizure until a week
after the incident.

"We withheld the information to allow the federal authorities to
investigate this matter," Sexton said.

DEA officials transported the money to be counted at a Birmingham bank
Thursday, but not until officers had their pictures made with the stacks of
cash. The stacks of one-, five-, 10- and 20-dollar bills weighed 417 pounds.

"I've never seen that much money," Sexton said.

There were a number of counterfeit bills in the driver's luggage as well,
but they were not included in the final tally.

If investigators are able to prove the money is drug-related, the sheriff's
office may receive a share.

"We have filed the appropriate paperwork for the cash, but it will be some
time before we'll know if we'll receive any portion of this currency,"
Sexton said.

Chief Deputy Ron Abernathy said he has talked with various agencies across
the country about similar large cash seizures.

"The sheriff's office is investigating with federal authorities. We've
received a number of calls from throughout the country about other
investigations involving large amounts of currency," he said.

During the same traffic detail last week, a man was arrested for possession
of a 1 1/2 pounds of marijuana. Another driver was discovered to have
$25,000 in cash that was stolen from the Baltimore area. Abernathy said
federal officials are following up that case.

Sexton commended the efforts of the deputies and Georgia officers who
discovered the money.

"They were here to train with our personnel," he said. "They did extremely
well with this training, which is evident."

Reach Stephanie Taylor at stephanie.taylor@tuscaloosanews.com or 345-0505
Ext. 258