Prosecutors seek to keep $180K in suspect drug money

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Federal prosecutors want to keep $180,000 in suspected drug money that was found during a Kansas traffic stop.

The Wichita Eagle reports that court records say the money was uncovered in July when a Kansas Highway Patrol trooper pulled over a pickup truck on Interstate 70 in Wabaunsee County for a traffic violation. The driver said he was traveling from Chicago to Denver to visit his sick mother, but a vehicle search turned up seven bundles of cash wrapped in duct tape.

Documents say the driver then told law enforcement that he was being paid to take the money to a Denver hotel. A drug dog detected the odor of controlled substances coming from the currency.

Prosecutors filed last week for the cash to be forfeited to the government.

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Information from: The Wichita (Kan.) Eagle, http://www.kansas.com