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Missing a flight is never fun, but for one traveler, it was an incredibly expensive mistake.
Authorities in Massachusetts confiscated a large sum of cash from a man at Logan Airport after he rebooked a missed flight. According to reports, after being questioned by various security and law officers, the man claimed to be carrying wildly different amounts of money.
Massachusetts State PoliceTEAMWORK This past weekend, a male booked a flight at Logan Airport, missed the flight, then booked a second flight the same day. The destination to which he was attempting to fly is known as a source area for illegal narcotics. As the passenger went through a TSA checkpoint he was questioned about a large quantity of US currency he was carrying, and stated that the amount was $1,500. When Massachusetts State Police Troopers from Troop F questioned the passenger subsequently, he claimed he was carrying $40,000 to $50,000 cash. The passenger was then questioned by MSP detectives and reported the amount he was carrying to be $80,000-$85,000. MSP K9 Duke, who is trained to detect the odor of narcotics, showed a strong alert to the man’s belongings. A subsequent final count of the cash the man was carrying was $138,980. Based on the totality of the circumstances, the money was help pending further investigation. The would-be passenger refused to sign a receipt for the secured currency and left the building, walking away from the money. The money will be subject to forfeiture proceedings.
According to a post on the Massachusetts State Police Facebook page, the suspect had booked a flight at Logan Airport this past weekend but missed it. He reportedly booked a second flight on the same day. The man’s specific destination has not been revealed, but authorities have identified it as a “source area for illegal narcotics.”
On Facebook, the Massachusetts State Police wrote, “As the passenger went through a TSA checkpoint he was questioned about a large quantity of US currency he was carrying, and stated that the amount was $1,500. When Massachusetts State Police Troopers from Troop F questioned the passenger subsequently, he claimed he was carrying $40,000 to $50,000 cash.”
The suspect reportedly continued to claim he was carrying larger amounts of money, reportedly telling MSP detectives that he was carrying between $80-85,000. Authorities also say that a state police dog, Duke, “showed a strong alert to the man’s belongings” (the dog is trained to detect narcotics).
Police eventually learned that the man was carrying $138,980 in cash.
“Based on the totality of the circumstances, the money was held pending further investigation." the Facebook post said. "The would-be passenger refused to sign a receipt for the secured currency and left the building, walking away from the money. The money will be subject to forfeiture proceedings.”
