This is our government.
Posted on 10/29/2021 8:51:58 AM PDT by Tired of Taxes
Kermit Warren, an out-of-work shoeshine man from New Orleans, was carrying nearly $30,000 in cash through the airport in Columbus, Ohio, last November when federal drug agents stopped him and began asking questions.
Warren was returning home with his life savings after the purchase of a truck fell through. He had a one-way plane ticket, no luggage and he gave some shaky answers about himself and the cash, leading the agents to suspect that it was drug money.
Warren wasn’t charged with a crime, but the agents seized all of his cash.
With his savings gone and the Covid pandemic depriving him of steady work, the longtime church deacon barely scraped by. He said he wasn’t even able to buy his seven grandchildren Christmas gifts.
“This last year has truly been a nightmare for me,” said Warren, 58.
But this week, he received good news: federal prosecutors agreed to return all of his money and dismiss the case, according to a settlement agreement signed Thursday and obtained by NBC News.
“It gives me a great amount of joy and peace,” Warren said. “What happened to me should never happen to anybody in this world.”
Thousands of people are stopped and stripped of their money each year by U.S. law enforcement under a process known as civil asset forfeiture.
(Excerpt) Read more at msn.com ...
His money still has not been returned. They said they'll try to return it to him by Thanksgiving.
This has always been a sore point with me. The burden of proof should be on the government, not the citizen. This should have never happened to this man and to too many others.
They take it like immediately but it takes weeks to return it? Cut him a check; oh, but should he deposit it, the IRS would put a hold on his account until they can verify where the funds legally came from. They’ll unfreeze the account by the following Thanksgiving.
“His money still has not been returned. They said they’ll try to return it to him by Thanksgiving.”
This should never have happened in the first place. But not returning his money until Thanksgiving doesn’t make sense. They took it from him on the spot with no problem, they need to return his money now, with interest and a penalty paid to him for being jerks.
Great news. I remember when this happened. Too often we hear of things like this but never hear the outcome years later. Glad to hear he gets his mo sy, but how much is he out now for lawyers fees now?
Will the DEA Gestapo pay back the stolen money with interest?
This is our government.
They’re lucky I’m not the judge. Every day they delay they would owe him an extra $1000.
“when he presented evidence of his income”
Unemployed for over a year. Shoeshine before that.
I knew freepers would be interested in this story.
I remember other stories of civil asset forfeiture posted here in the past.
Yes. Should have an inflation adjustment. That $30,0000 should now be about $36,0000 after being held for a year, given the price pressures on goods and inflation.
“They’re lucky I’m not the judge. Every day they delay they would owe him an extra $1000.”
Like they care. It’s not their money.
Maybe if the agents had to pay it personally, it would matter.
The entire concept of civil asset forfeiture is disgusting and violates due process. It should be illegal unless the person is convicted of a crime.
Yeah and I would add damages for the loss of the money given his circumstances.
$30,000
LOL! I think my zero key is sensitive!
He deserves interest at the very least. Give him 450,000 and screw at least 1 illegal alien out of money they neither deserve nor earned.
He should claim he was separated from his family at the border and Brandon will put him on a jet to hand him a check for $900,000. Forget the 30K.
‘… when federal drug agents stopped him and began asking questions.’
This part puzzles me. Why would they stop him and why did he answer any questions??
Great news would be the money returned with penalties and interest. Great news would be the pigs that stole his money being fired and bankrupted. This news is simply a smaller injustice than the initial one.
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