The Attorney General sought forfeiture of $138,650 seized during a police search conducted in the course of a cocaine trafficking investigation.
The respondents asserted that the funds were legitimate family savings accumulated for education and housing.
The court rejected the respondents’ explanations as inconsistent and not credible, noting the storage method of the cash, the presence of a drug dealer’s fingerprint inside the safe where the majority of the funds were stored, and evidence linking the residence to ongoing drug trafficking.
The court also found that the respondents had misrepresented their financial circumstances and failed to disclose the cash assets while receiving government disability benefits.
The court concluded on a balance of probabilities that the funds were proceeds or instruments of unlawful activity under the Civil Remedies Act, 2001 and ordered forfeiture.
