DEA Asset Forfeiture Program Suspended

 

In airports anyway. The program was suspended in late 2024 but I hadn’t heard anything about it until now.

The DOJ had authorized the DEA to confiscate the assets of travelers who “consented” to be searched. The only criterion was suspicion of criminal activity.

The agents would take cash without proof of wrongdoing, and might never charge their victims of any crime. The confiscated money would go into the DEA’s Asset Forfeiture Fund, and could then be spent by federal law enforcement.

Informants providing intelligence to the DEA would often share a portion of the “take.” The intelligence could be based on suspicious activity such as last-minute bookings, or one-way tickets.

I’ve been hearing about this nefarious activity for years, but the program was suspended without any headlines that I’ve seen.

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  1. kedavis Coolidge
    kedavis
    @kedavis

    Orange Gerald:

    In airports anyway. The program was suspended in late 2024 but I hadn’t heard anything about it until now.

    The DOJ had authorized the DEA to confiscate assets of travelers who “consented” to be searched. The only criteria was suspicion of criminal activity.

    The “consent” was usually under duress, as in the people weren’t allowed to board their flight until they “consented.”

    The agents would take cash without proof of wrongdoing, and might never charge their victims of any crime. The confiscated money would go into the DEA’s Asset Forfeiture Fund, and could then be spent by federal law enforcement.

    Informants providing intelligence to the DEA would often share a portion of the “take.” The intelligence could be based on suspicious activity such as last minute bookings, or one way tickets.

    I’ve been hearing about this nefarious activity for years, but the program was suspended without any headlines that I’ve seen.

    Civil Asset Forfeiture has been a scandal for a long time.  The airport stuff is likely to be/have been a fairly small part of the total.

    YouTube does have some useful resources.  Steve Lehto is one.  The Civil Rights Lawyer is another.

     

    • #1
  2. Chris O Coolidge
    Chris O
    @ChrisO

    Orange Gerald: I’ve been hearing about this nefarious activity for years, but the program was suspended without any headlines that I’ve seen.

    And it happened back in November. Credit where it is due to the Deputy AG that made the call. It surprised me that Biden officials suspended the policy. That’ll learn me.

    • #2
  3. Richard Easton Coolidge
    Richard Easton
    @RichardEaston

    I asked an Uber driver at DFW what was the longest ride he’d had. He picked up two guys at DFW and realized that it was a four hour ride north of Oklahoma City. They haggled over a bonus and agreed on $100. One guy opened his briefcase and it was full of money. They were high stakes gamblers who’d won lots of money in Dallas. To make it impossible to trace them, they’d taken an Uber to the airport. They walked around for a while and then had him drive to a store parking lot. They weren’t going to risk TSA confiscating the cash.

    • #3
  4. kedavis Coolidge
    kedavis
    @kedavis

    Richard Easton (View Comment):

    I asked an Uber driver at DFW what was the longest ride he’d had. He picked up two guys at DFW and realized that it was a four hour ride north of Oklahoma City. They haggled over a bonus and agreed on $100. One guy opened his briefcase and it was full of money. They were high stakes gamblers who’d won lots of money in Dallas. To make it impossible to trace them, they’d taken an Uber to the airport. They walked around for a while and then had him drive to a store parking lot. They weren’t going to risk TSA confiscating the cash.

    There have also been reports of casinos etc “finking” on their patrons who were carrying a lot of cash.  They could also get a piece of what was “forfeited.”

    That’s in addition to cops just hanging around casinos and stopping and searching cars that leave, without any help from the casinos.

    • #4
  5. DonG (¡Afuera!) Coolidge
    DonG (¡Afuera!)
    @DonG

    Asset forfeiture is simply theft.   Taking anything without a judicial process is a theft and must be stopped everywhere.

    • #5
  6. Randy Weivoda Moderator
    Randy Weivoda
    @RandyWeivoda

    DonG (¡Afuera!) (View Comment):

    Asset forfeiture is simply theft. Taking anything without a judicial process is a theft and must be stopped everywhere.

    Yes.  Congress should have outlawed this years ago.

    • #6
  7. The Reticulator Member
    The Reticulator
    @TheReticulator

    DonG (¡Afuera!) (View Comment):

    Asset forfeiture is simply theft. Taking anything without a judicial process is a theft and must be stopped everywhere.

    Theft is back in style.  Manifest destiny, you know.  Canada and Greenland should belong to us.  National security.  

    • #7
  8. The Scarecrow Thatcher
    The Scarecrow
    @TheScarecrow

    I love America and always default to us being the good guys. But things like this make me think that sometimes we can be thugs, who rationalize thug behavior. Outright, planned and organized, indefensible theft.

    We need more Captain America and less John Gotti.

    • #8
  9. Nathanael Ferguson Contributor
    Nathanael Ferguson
    @NathanaelFerguson

    This is a welcome development. Civil Asset Forfeiture is piracy conducted by government. 

    • #9
  10. kedavis Coolidge
    kedavis
    @kedavis

    Also, as others have noted at the time, this has only been SUSPENDED.  Not wholly removed/cancelled/whatever.

    • #10
  11. She Member
    She
    @She

    The Scarecrow (View Comment):
    We need more Captain America and less John Gotti.

    Not this Captain America (language warning):

    • #11
  12. iWe Coolidge
    iWe
    @iWe

    This is SUCH good news! Absolutely wonderful.

    I hope the Feds force this throughout law enforcement. You cannot seize property without first convicting. That is theft.

    • #12
  13. The Reticulator Member
    The Reticulator
    @TheReticulator

    iWe (View Comment):

    This is SUCH good news! Absolutely wonderful.

    I hope the Feds force this throughout law enforcement. You cannot seize property without first convicting. That is theft.

    There are some here on Ricochet who will soon announce that they are tired of all this virtue signaling and moral preening on the subject.  

    • #13
  14. Orange Gerald Coolidge
    Orange Gerald
    @Jose

    I guess I’m not the only who didn’t see the media trumpet this news. <sarcasm_off>

     

    • #14
  15. kedavis Coolidge
    kedavis
    @kedavis

    P.S.  The Institute for Justice (IJ.org) is instrumental in many of these cases.  Definitely worth supporting.

    • #15
  16. Barry Jones Thatcher
    Barry Jones
    @BarryJones

    The Reticulator (View Comment):

    DonG (¡Afuera!) (View Comment):

    Asset forfeiture is simply theft. Taking anything without a judicial process is a theft and must be stopped everywhere.

    Theft is back in style. Manifest destiny, you know. Canada and Greenland should belong to us. National security.

    Not sure I understand…the last I heard anything about acquiring Greenland it was thru a purchase.  Is buying something theft?

    • #16
  17. The Reticulator Member
    The Reticulator
    @TheReticulator

    Barry Jones (View Comment):

    The Reticulator (View Comment):

    DonG (¡Afuera!) (View Comment):

    Asset forfeiture is simply theft. Taking anything without a judicial process is a theft and must be stopped everywhere.

    Theft is back in style. Manifest destiny, you know. Canada and Greenland should belong to us. National security.

    Not sure I understand…the last I heard anything about acquiring Greenland it was thru a purchase. Is buying something theft?

    Not always.

    • #17
  18. CarolJoy, Not So Easy To Kill Coolidge
    CarolJoy, Not So Easy To Kill
    @CarolJoy

    The Reticulator (View Comment):

    DonG (¡Afuera!) (View Comment):

    Asset forfeiture is simply theft. Taking anything without a judicial process is a theft and must be stopped everywhere.

    Theft is back in style. Manifest destiny, you know. Canada and Greenland should belong to us. National security.

    If only someone in charge of running this country was interested in reclaiming California!!

    • #18
  19. The Reticulator Member
    The Reticulator
    @TheReticulator

    The Reticulator (View Comment):

    Barry Jones (View Comment):

    The Reticulator (View Comment):

    DonG (¡Afuera!) (View Comment):

    Asset forfeiture is simply theft. Taking anything without a judicial process is a theft and must be stopped everywhere.

    Theft is back in style. Manifest destiny, you know. Canada and Greenland should belong to us. National security.

    Not sure I understand…the last I heard anything about acquiring Greenland it was thru a purchase. Is buying something theft?

    Not always.

    I should add that even if the purchase was made at gunpoint or otherwise under duress, if you accept the payment as consideration, it will usually not be considered theft in a court of law.   

    • #19
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