$95K In Cash Seized From 3 Groups Of Travelers At Dulles Airport

DULLES, VA — U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers confiscated a combined total of $95,397 in unreported current recently from three groups of travelers at Washington Dulles International Airport, according to a release.

On July 21, CBP officers seized $29,052 from a couple on its way to Lebanon and, July 26, a Nepal-bound family were forced to surrender $32,001 to CBP officers. Then, on July 31, CBP seized $34,344 from a South Korean family after arriving to Dulles on a flight from their homeland.

In all three cases, CBP officers found the unreported money while searching the travelers' baggage. After surrendering the unreported currency, the travelers were free to continue on their way.

Under U.S. law, there is no limit on how much currency and other monetary instruments travelers are allowed to bring into or take out of the country. However, travelers are required to report all currency of $10,000 and over by filling out a FINCEN 105 before traveling to or from the U.S.

“For whatever reason, travelers continue to gamble that Customs and Border Protection officers won’t find their unreported and concealed currency, but they quickly learn that that’s a bad bet,” said Daniel Escobedo, CBP’s area port director for the Area Port of Washington, D.C., in a release. “These seizures should be a reminder to all travelers to the importance of being truthful and complying with our nation’s laws, including federal currency reporting requirements.”