Arizona cops are sued for REFUSING to return $40,000 in cash seized from black trucking boss who was traveling to buy a new rig after they accused him of being a drug dealer with no evidence
Daily Mail
November 20, 2022
A lawsuit, filed in April by Triple J Trucking owner Jerry Johnson, demands the sum returned in full for what he slammed as 'false accusations' by the force, who seized the money during an August 2020 stop at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.
Johnson, the owner and operator of his Charlotte -based business, alleges that seizure was unjust, saying he had saved the money to purchase a new semi-truck.
Confident he could find a deal at an auction in Phoenix, the suit states, Johnson flew domestically with the cash from Charlotte to the Arizona city - but was quickly jammed up by detectives who questioned him about the perfectly legal haul.
The suit adds that during this supposedly routine stop, investigators became adamant that Johnson, a middle-aged black men, was in the process of laundering the money as part of an illegal drug trade.
Eventually, under the threat of arrest and further interrogation, Johnson cooperated with detectives by handing over the $39,500.
The Phoenix Police Department, headed by Brian Sullivan, has since refused to return the sum, standing by their assessment that the credentialed North Carolinian was up to no good.
Outside of arguments aired by the state, the force has yet to comment on the case.
4 comments:
This whole asset forfeiture thing is something that should be looked at real hard.
Now, for The Rest of the Story. The boys won't let this happen in Vegas.
Why aren't the cops seizing money from inbound plane passengers to Vegas or Atlantic City? I guarantee those gamblers are carrying lots of cash and believe it or not the casinos know they are the perfect money launderers. Deposit $40,000 (cashiers check) with the casino. Stay 4 days. Each day withdraw $10,000. Spend less than $500 a day and pocket the clean money. Play high end slots without a tracking/players card. Tip well. Gamble some for the pit boss to see and charge everything to your room. Tip your host $100 when you settle up on your way out. I predict your room, meals, spa and show will be comped. Guess what? You probably won't lose all of you bets. Now, you know how The Rest of the Story.
I note that the author of this piece is not named. Just saying.......
So much for due process.
Why anyone ever trusts law enforcement or the courts after reading these kinds of stories is beyond me.
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