Pubdate: Wed, 18 Nov 1998
Source: San Antonio Express-News (TX)
Copyright: 1998 San Antonio Express-News
Contact:  http://www.expressnews.com/
Author: Zeke MacCormack

GOLIAD SEIZURE NETS $2.1 MILLION

Except for a few paper cuts, life was back to normal Tuesday for
Goliad County Sheriff J.K. McMahan after seizing and counting a record
$2,169,108 in suspected drug money over the weekend.

The cash was found inside five truck differentials carried in a dump
truck stopped for speeding on Texas 59 south of Goliad about 10:30
a.m. Friday.

Department of Public Safety trooper Jimmy Moore initiated the stop.
The search began after Doris the drug dog "alerted" on the cargo.

"We'll probably double her salary," joked McMahan, "to
nothing."

Counting and recounting the money took 13 people from 1:30 p.m. Friday
to 3 a.m. Saturday, he said.

"I like money, but I got so damn tired of looking at it I would have
rather done anything else," he said.

"A few of us got paper cuts," the sheriff added.

The seizure was announced Monday afternoon only after the cash was
turned over to officials from the U.S. Federal Reserve.

"I carried a check to the district attorney yesterday," said McMahan.
"He'll put it in an interest-bearing account until we do the
forfeiture on it, and then we'll divide it up."

Michael Sheppard, the district attorney, expressed doubt that someone
will step up and claim the money, saying, "They're going to have some
explaining to do if they do."

The Goliad department's largest prior seizure was $110,000, according
to McMahan, adding: "We lost that to the IRS."

McMahan said he expects 50 percent of the money will go to the
Department of Public Safety, 25 percent to the 24th Judicial District
attorney and 25 percent to his department.

No charges were filed against the driver of the truck, who gave police
permission to search the vehicle, McMahan said. The trucker disavowed
any knowledge of the cash.

A woman who works at the trucking company said they accepted $700 from
an unknown customer to transport the cargo to Laredo.

"It was just a bad job on our part to do this, and take business from
somebody we didn't know," she said Tuesday. "This was our first time
and our last."
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Checked-by: Patrick Henry