Pubdate: Sun, 19 Oct 2014
Source: Province, The (CN BC)
Copyright: 2014 Postmedia Network Inc.
Contact: http://www2.canada.com/theprovince/letters.html
Website: http://www.theprovince.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/476
Author: Jennifer Saltman
Page: A17

MAN CLOSER TO RECLAIMING SEIZED CASH

A B.C. man is one step closer to reclaiming some of the money seized
from him by border officers at the Vancouver International Airport
almost four years ago, following a recent decision by the Federal
Court of Appeal.

On Jan. 5, 2011, Robert Bo Da Huang was scheduled to fly out of
Vancouver International Airport to Hong Kong.

In the departures area, he was approached by a Canada Border Services
Agency officer.

Huang admitted to the officer that he was carrying more than $10,000
in cash and he had not reported that fact.

In the bag, Huang had three bundles of cash totalling
$15,760.

After interviewing Huang, the officer decided to seize the currency as
suspected proceeds of crime.

He did this for a number of reasons, including the facts that Huang
had been previously convicted ofdrug smuggling, had been unemployed
since 2007 and had no source of income.

Huang contested the seizure to the CBSA recourse directorate and
provided proof that $6,700 of the money was from the sale of his car.

He claimed the rest came from his mother and personal savings, but had
no records to support his claim.

The recourse directorate still suspected that $9,060 was illicit money
and decided in May 2012 that all of the seized money would be held as
forfeit, even though some was legitimate.

Huang applied to the Federal Court for a judicial review of the
decision, and a hearing was held in Vancouver in May 2013.

In a written decision released a month later, Justice Sandra Simpson
said it was reasonable that the Minister of Public Safety and
Emergency Preparedness held forfeit $9,060 of the seized money.

But she said that "the decision to confirm forfeiture of the seized
funds including the legitimate funds was an unreasonable exercise of
discretion."

Simpson ordered that Huang's request for the return of the legitimate
funds be reconsidered by the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency
Preparedness.

The minister then appealed to the Federal Court of Appeal, arguing
that the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing
Act does not authorize the partial return of seized currency.

Earlier this month, three justices from the court agreed that the
minister's appeal should be dismissed.
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MAP posted-by: Matt