SEIZED MONEY UP FOR GRABS

In April, local and federal authorities seized $14,000 during a drug
bust at Antonio Yellock's Burlington home.

He and girlfriend Valerie Enoch, who lived with him at 2303 Trail
Five, were arrested on several drug charges.

Now, the government is giving someone a chance to claim that
money.

The U.S. Attorney's Office ran an ad in the Times-News three times
last month asking "any person claiming an interest in or right
against" the property to file a claim.

Of course that doesn't mean anybody can come and say the money is
theirs and walk away with bundles of 20's and 100's.

"It doesn't work that way," said Lynne Klauer, a spokeswoman with the
U.S. Attorney's Office. "They have to show where the money came from."
Her office advertises the existence of these funds to comply with
federal statutes that deal with civil forfeiture actions.

Typically, she said, the claimant is the person from whom the money
was seized. In addition to establishing a connection to the property,
the person has to prove that the money was obtained by lawful means.
Earnings records, tax returns, and other similar documents are usually
all that is required to show that.

In this particular case, that might not be enough since investigators
also found cocaine and marijuana in the house. The money, found in
stacks in different denominations, was hidden in a hutch above the
dresser and was identified by a drug sniffing dog as having traces of
drugs. If nobody can make a valid claim for the money, the government
gets it. Each year, local law enforcement agencies receive forfeiture
money and properties from federal and county drug busts and other
similar operations. According to the U.S. Department of the Treasury,
the government forfeited about $374 million in cash and assets in 2004.

The U.S. Middle District Court, of which Alamance County is part,
forfeits roughly $4 million worth of assets in a given year, Klauer
said. About 20 percent of funds forfeited are retained and used to
cover the costs of forfeiture actions. The balance is shared with the
law enforcement agencies that participated in the seizure.

"They can put a request and if they are the only requester they can
get 80 percent back of those funds," Klauer explained.

She added that these funds are restricted, which means the money can
only be used for specific purposes, like buying new equipment or
starting education programs. However, if the case involves a victim,
such as identity theft cases and bank robberies, 100 percent of the
money goes to the victim's restitution fund. Klauer said that in
investment fraud cases, forfeitures seek to get property away from the
wrongdoers while the criminal process takes its course. Since these
cases can be lengthy, these funds can be put toward restitution while
the case is solved.