https://www.yahoo.com/news/highway-robbers-trip-buy-farmland-090151758.html

Rich Schapiro and Alexandra Chaidez
Sat, October 16, 2021, 4:01 AM

A pair of New Mexico businessmen were driving along Interstate 40 in
Oklahoma late one night in April when a sheriff’s deputy flipped on his lights and sirens and pulled over their BMW sedan.

The two men, Nang Thai and Weichuan Liu, were on their way to a hotel in Oklahoma City. They planned to catch some sleep before heading out in the morning to close on a 10-acre plot of farmland they’d agreed to buy for $100,000.

But now, at about 2 a.m. on April 19, a Canadian County sheriff’s deputy was peering into their car.

“We didn’t understand why he pulled us over,” said Thai, 51, a Vietnamese immigrant and father of two from Albuquerque. “I was driving under the speed limit.”

They had no way of knowing at the time but Thai and Liu were about to begin an hourslong ordeal that would leave them stripped of all their cash and searching for answers. Their experience highlights the controversial law enforcement practice known as civil asset forfeiture

My view on this has changed 180 degrees. Hope they not only get their money back but sue for any damages that occur if the land deal falls through.

Good policework.
Driving around at 2 am with 100g and said they were going to buy a farm,LOL.Moneylaundering for sure.

"Adding insult to injury, they contend that the amount the sheriff’s office says it confiscated – $131,500 – is actually $10,000 short of the total they had in their car that day."

https://www.necn.com/news/national-...with-police-taking-all-his-cash/6534620/

Keith

X2...something fishy. Stories changed and dont make sense. I do not agree with confiscating money without more evidence, but I think those two fellers was up to something besides a land purchase.

That law has been abused since it was enacted by many.

To add some context to what’s happening in OK is the “medical” marijuana farms are cash only, including land purchases. Poor job of regulating the start up of this has resulted in a lot of illegal grows and foreign investment. $100k is a high price for 10 acres in my region. About 3x going rate, which smells like a grow operation, I’m hearing they pay well.

I don’t like the seizure of cash without cause, but it smells like illegal activity from here.

Something does seem weird but a lot of people that immigrate here use a lot of cash because they don’t trust banks.

something fishy alright being pulled over For What??

My hunch it was a good stop because nobody seems to be arguing that point...if not, it would be their first angle at getting their money back.

I wonder why? Oh yeah 600 dollar mandatory reporting.

Maybe so, but prove it or leave them alone. This smacks of "tuning up" folks because the cops ain't got nothing else to hold them on.

Might be legit purchase and a common problem in that county.

"Among those surprised by the turn of events is the man who was set to sell his land to Thai and Liu.

“I was shocked when I heard of the confiscation of their money,” the seller told NBC News.

He said he had met with them a few days earlier and had drawn up a contract to sell the property to Thai for $100,000. NBC News has viewed a copy of the agreement."


"Billions of dollars are taken yearly from citizens who are never charged with a crime, and are not afforded any of the due process provisions of the Constitution, such as a day in court, presumption of innocence, right to counsel, and an impartial jury,” said Brad Cates, former director of the Justice Department’s Asset Forfeiture Office during the Reagan Administration who has become an outspoken critic of civil forfeiture.

So far this year, local law enforcement agencies confiscated more than $1.3 million from people driving through Canadian County, according to an NBC News review of court records."

Better one guilty man go free than one innocent man...

Possible Adam, but it wouldnt be too hard to find someone after the fact draw up a contract to make things look legit. I still cant figure out why you carry 140k+ when you are executing a contract for 100k..? Fishy....

The burden of proof is on the state. Legal tender for all debts public and private. says right on the notes its legal to have private transactions.

Anonymity scares big brother

A guy slowly driving down a country road in the early morning before daylight and stopping occasionally then driving again sounds a bit fishy to many people. The guy could be looking to poach deer or planning on ditching evidence of a crime or maybe trapping season is open and he is checking his sets. Just cause something smells fishy dosen't make it right to take his truck even if he has a gun. Fishy isn't a crime. The government is corrupt and many laws make the citizens less secure when they are sold as security.

That being said I don't think the article has all the details so I won't comment on this specific situation.

Why do folks need so many guns? Maybe they're up to no good. Let's just do civil forfeiture.

They have been paying with cash for everything. They go the local propane place and get 40 bottles of propane filled and pay with cash everything is cash. I heard that its all money laundering. They are starting to crack down on them now with a lot of bust a week.

Dont disagree, you see my earlier post mentions I dont agree with confiscation without evidence. However, I still beleive these two were not out there to buy land .