$100K In Unreported Cash Seized From Travelers By CBP At VA Airport

STERLING, VA — U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers seized $99,443 in unreported currency from two groups of international travelers at Washington Dulles International Airport during Memorial Day weekend, the agency said.

Both groups were attempting to board flights to Brussels, Belgium, when they were stopped during departure inspections, CBP said. The travelers were released without criminal charges.

On Saturday, May 23, CBP said a currency detection dog alerted officers to a U.S. citizen man and his family as they prepared to board a flight. Officers asked the man how much currency the family had, and he initially said he and his wife each had $7,000, according to CBP.

After officers explained federal currency reporting requirements, the man reported verbally and in writing that the family had $20,000, CBP said. Officers then helped him complete a U.S. Treasury Department currency reporting form, on which he reported $22,500.

During a later inspection, officers found additional currency concealed inside a small purse, CBP said. Officers also conducted a pat-down of the man and found $1,450 concealed in the pockets of pants he was wearing under an outer pair of pants. CBP said the total amount was $46,520.

The next day, CBP officers stopped a U.S. citizen woman and her Cameroonian mother before they boarded a flight to Brussels. After officers explained the currency reporting law, the pair reported having $15,000, according to CBP.

CBP said officers helped the daughter complete the required form, on which she reported $22,361. During a baggage inspection, officers found additional currency stitched inside women’s undergarments, the agency said. The total amount was $52,923.

“These are two seizures in which travelers went to extreme measures to unnecessarily conceal currency from Customs and Border Protection officers during a departure inspection,” said Christine Waugh, CBP area port director for the Area Port of Washington, D.C.

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Waugh said currency reporting laws do not limit how much money travelers may take overseas and do not tax the money.

“The law is focused on identifying bulk currency smuggling attempts that may be associated with illegal activity, such as financial fraud or money scams, or criminal enterprises, such as drug or weapons smuggling or human trafficking,” Waugh said. “We just ask that travelers truthfully comply with our nation’s laws and then be on their way to vacation or to visit family.”

Travelers may carry any amount of currency or monetary instruments, but amounts over $10,000 must be reported to the U.S. Treasury Department on a Report of International Transportation of Currency or Monetary Instruments form, known as FinCEN 105, CBP said.

CBP said travelers can complete the form online before arriving at their airport departure gate or ask officers at the gate for help completing it.

The agency said travelers whose currency is seized may miss their flights and could face criminal prosecution for bulk currency smuggling.

CBP said officers at Dulles seized a combined $163,181 in unreported currency from four travelers in April. In January, officers seized a combined $119,178 from four travelers, according to the agency.