Essex Man Caught with £28k Cash Stash at Channel Tunnel
On Saturday, November 7, 2020, Hekuran Halili, 70, from Barking, Essex, was nabbed at the Channel Tunnel terminal in Folkestone while travelling to Belgium.
Hidden Cash Sparks Border Force Suspicion
Halili was a passenger in a car stopped by Border Force officers. The driver claimed they were off to deliver furniture to a friend in Belgium. But officers quickly grew suspicious when they found both men carrying far more money than declared — including bundles of banknotes sewn into the driver’s jacket lining.
£28,000 Seized and Forfeited Under Proceeds of Crime Act
kent-police/" title="Kent Police" data-wpil-keyword-link="linked" data-wpil-monitor-id="1295">Kent Police were called in. The entire £28,000 stash was seized and later permanently confiscated under the Proceeds of Crime Act. Halili disputed losing his slice of the cash — £9,258 — but skipped the maidstone/" title="Maidstone" data-wpil-keyword-link="linked">Maidstone Magistrates’ Court hearing on July 19, 2022. The forfeiture order went ahead anyway, and he was slapped with £2,000 in court costs.
No Charges, But Police Say No Proof for Cash
Despite no criminal charges being filed, Detective Inspector Dave Godfrey of Kent Police’s Economic Crime Unit stated:
“Neither Mr Halili nor his associate could provide any verifiable evidence explaining why they carried such large sums across the border.”
“Our financial investigators regularly use the Proceeds of Crime Act to ensure illegally gained money doesn’t fuel more crime, delivering a strong message that crime does not pay.”
