In Plane Sight: Drug agents searching passengers for cash at airport gates 

Nothing like violating your 4th Amendment rights.

This idea that carrying cash is somehow always a crime is very disturbing

Officers are *STEALING* money. Stealing was the word you were looking for.

the police get a CUT of seized cash??? talk about a massive conflict of interest. completely insane.

What a disgrace to law enforcement. Anyone who willfully disregards a persons rights and freedoms is garbage

Remember folks, it is completely legal for them to lie to you, but illegal for you to lie to them.

What an absolute disgrace for law enforcement.

Illegal search and seizure, that entire department needs to be investigated.

Great job by this reporter. The guy got balls to confront those officers and help people. God bless America

They should be federally indicted for conducting illegal searches and seizures.

Policing for cash ... departments get a cut. It's sickening.

Thats the same way scammers and criminals walk away when beeing confronted by journalists that are exposing them. They know they are wrong.

I’ve never understood why it’s legal for authorities to take people’s cash.

To start with, your bags have already gone through security by the time you are in the boarding area. Anything you could have purchased in the gift shops have passed through security. The area is secure. There is zero reason for an additional search. This is attempted robbery, plain and simple. Civil asset forfeiture must be abolished.

Those "agents" should be held accountable for their crimes.

Yet so many people refuse to believe they are stealing citizens' "innocent" money. This is beyond disgusting. The fact that they target people by profiling them, often by race, should make this criminal.

The way Fikes walks off and refuses to respond at the end of the video just proves that he knows what he is doing is indeed wrong as hell. These particular people in law enforcement are greedy and disgraceful! I feel awful for the innocent people who have been questioned and had money seized for zero reason.

This is highway robbery straight up. To just take someone money without finding any drugs and just take their money because they say they’re going to buy drugs with it is crazy.

Having cash does not make you a criminal.

This country is in shambles.

*This is a despicable abuse of authority, and it's absolutely pissing all over people's rights!* The jackass DEA agent essentially threatened the man to get the search. These people need to be held accountable. This is beyond outrageous. These thieves with badges need to be held accountable.

This is low. My heart goes out to the innocent people who were stolen from by the system that supposedly “protects” them.

When they ask questions they won’t allow you to walk away, but when you ask them questions they scatter

It's satisfying to see these so called drug agents afraid of the reporter and just quickly walk away when they know they are on camera.

These crooked cops aren't afraid of cameras... they're afraid of accountability. They're a disgrace to law enforcement.

NEVER give your name, identification, travel details, or reason of travel to anyone unless they can provide their identification and reason of stop. Ask why the search is being done, why was I chosen, what are the suspicions, am I being detained? NO ONE IN PLAIN CLOTHING should stop you and demand a search without your CONSENT.

I am a Brit and if this behaviour happened in my country it would be a national scandal. The authorities and would jump on the police officers like a ton of bricks. I like America but feel disappointed with the laws in some areas that allow these miscarriages of justice to continue. It looks like legalised theft. That victim was justifiably upset, not only did they steal his money but they humiliated him in public as well. It is a disgrace.

I'm white, and this happened to me as I was departing Madrid, Spain. I came very close to missing my flight home after they took their sweet time searching my carry-ons and purse in a 'randomly selected' search, pulling everything out and laying it all out on a folding table for everyone to see - including my measly $100 travel money, which they didn't take, thankfully. It is demeaning and incredibly stressful and makes you feel completely powerless, scared and angry.

Letting any department benefit from confiscated property is a conflict of interest and should not be allowed. Nobody should consent to a search!

They say DEA, then why is the local police there? Where are the Port Police? How can this be justified when it clearly is Unconstitutional?

I have said it so many times: NEVER TALK TO COPS SAY: "Am I suspected of committing a crime?" then "AM I detained or am I free to go".

Taking the supposed "drug money" is the most nonsensical thing I've ever heard! Isn't there supposed to be a presumption of innocence? If the authorities cannot prove the money is for buying drugs, then it should stay with you. How the heck are you supposed to prove it isn't for drugs? It's a legalized form of corruption because the people who do it benefit from confiscating the purported drug money.

That is plain robbery and abuse of power. Those "agents" should be held accountable for this crime.

I BLAME the Judges because they ALLOW this unlawful behavior.

When I was a kid people used to say "It a free country!" Don't hear that anymore.

Refuse the search. Miss your flight. Record everything. ALWAYS be willing to go as far as necessary, including harassing lawsuits against them afterwards. These people are criminals themselves and must be opposed at every instance.

As a Georgia attorney, if they are a government agent then don’t answer any questions , nor do you let them search your bag without a warrant. Period.

Yet another reason why I don't fly. Years ago I flew to FL (the last time I have flown) to pick up a car that I had purchased on eBay. And I was carrying the full amount of the car with me, in cash. I was paranoid the entire time that I would be stopped, searched, and my money seized "on suspicion" of a "crime." We need to curb the excesses and abuses of warrantless searches and the ability of law enforcement to confiscate personal funds. And we 100% need to get these @$$holes out of the airports!!!

This "officer" and his cohort's reactions say it all.

The second you ask him questions he freezes up and gets uncomfortable. Well what he's doing is a million times worse! What an absolute hypocrite.

Unconstitutional. Do not consent.

We NEED more media coverage on this and CIVIL Asset Forfeiture!!! Thank you, please continue documenting this issue.

“I don’t consent to searches, am I free to go?”

Either boycott the airport or sue them . The airport is harboring these criminals and their activities. The cops know the money is being confiscated illegally thus making their seizures unlawful.

Civil Asset Forfeiture should be deemed unconstitutional. Abolish the DEA and TSA

I would have refused to allow them to search my stuff and refused to answer a single question even if it meant me missing my flight. If you do not stand up and use your rights you will in fact loose them.

"Administratively forfeited" should actually be "Administratively STOLEN".

Of all the crime being committed within the metro-Atlanta area, they focus on the airport. The mayor, DA, Sheriff, Chief of Police and all other officials need to be FIRED immediately and lawsuits filed from each passenger who was unjustly searched and/or property seized!

There is a real danger in setting up the law where the law enforcement can benefit by taking money or goods from the people. It invites abuse.

What's funny is most people don't carry a lot of money for fear of being robbed. But damn the cops are now the robbers.😐

This is crazy and any normal minded person knows it's wrong. These men are morally bankrupt.

Finally Atlanta. This is news! Excellent job!

This process and these police officers are violating so many of our constitutional rights. What happened to their oath of protect and serve??? Sounds as if the police officers are their just to protect and serve themselves. Disgusting. Qualified immunity needs to be abolished in these types of police activities. These police officers know what they are doing is unconstitutional yet they continue to harass innocent people.

These cops sure didn't want to be stopped and questioned now did they? I would be ashamed if my kid grew up and did this. Literally criminals.

What is the point of the TSA search if you can be literally hijacked at the last minute by these guys for another search and even have your money declared "guilty" and taken if you can't immediately prove it's not dirty? This is hella shady.

This is what journalism looks like. Well done to everyone involved.

Blame the police department. They care about nobody is right. only about finding money. Free money.

Civil Asset Forfeiture should be illegal. They are looking for your cash. Drugs have nothing to do with it.

GLAD YOU SHARED THERE FACES NOW MORE PEOPLE WILL BE AWARE OF WHAT THEY DO!!! THANK YOU

the walk of shame when they are being questioned about their messed up methods

Absolutely 100% the police dept should NOT EVER get a cut of any asset even assets obtained when there was actually a crime. Why giving a cut is a bad idea should seem obvious.

If they can find people willing to do this to innocent citizens then they can find people to violate any and all our rights. It needs to stop.

It's mind-boggling that innocent, paying customers are expected to tolerate this kind of treatment at the hands of law enforcement.

This happened to me once in another airport. The first thing I said was that my bag had already been xrayed. Then I refused to consent to a search, and they threatened to detain me and make me miss my flight. Fine, go ahead, check the bag. They asked me all the same annoying questions, and I responded with, "I'm not talking to you," over and over again, like a broken record. They gave up.

Never consent to a search. Invoke your rights.

I watched a video about civil forfeiture on Steve Lehto's channel. He talked about a man that was flying out of New Jersey ? arriving in Miami. He had a large amount of cash for a purchase he was going to make in Florida. He told the TSA people about the cash. The TSA called DOJ and his funds were seized. The Lawyer he hired argued that the TSA was responsible for flight safety and had overstepped their authority. The man got his money back, Lawyer fees paid and $3900 extra for his trouble.

And cops want to know why they are hated

This is a clear example of government going rogue

Congratulations on this excellent reporting. Please continue your investigation on this abuse of power.

It's crazy that they have TSA security, and they still do this. This sounds scandalous! Wonder how many "bonuses" these agents walk away with. 🤔

NEVER consent to a search. If they do one anyway without a warrant or PC, it makes it a heck of a lot easier to get back whatever they steal from you.

This is outrageous and unconstitutional.

Great investigative reporting. Shameful on all agencies involved in this scam.

If you want to live free in AmeriKa you have to go to law school to learn the laws to keep the government off your back.

We are slowly and surely turning into a police state and the American people aren't saying much of anything...just standing back and watching it happen. Thank you for this excellent report!

Finally some real journalism

The faces of these officers need to be published everywhere with their identities and the agencies they work for.

Wow this needs to be shared by everyone! This is criminal!

I love how having cash now is considered questionable and justified for searches. Unbelievable

These illegal searches are outrageous

This is ridiculous. Isn’t TSA enough? Cold consent? BS. This is outrageous and unconstitutional.

Why would anyone agree to these searches? I would miss my flight instead of agreeing to any searches of my property. Why people so easily give up their rights shocks me every time watch stories like this. People just bow down to the cops. If these cops knew that people would not give them permission to search and would defend their rights no matter what, they would not use these tactics.

Wow, I'm glad you did this report. Imagine planning a trip to LA and becoming an unsuspected victim of this. Your trip is over before it even got started. This looks a lot like profiling.

This happens in other airports, too, not just Atlanta. DON'T travel with large amounts of cash! And, tell your state politicians to ban this practice of seizing money without proof.

The reason they're allowed to do this is because, we as citizens, complain in comment sections, but do absolutely nothing else to prevent it. The news report gets our attention, but not our action. This practice takes place in neighborhoods outside of the airport everyday, but because it affects certain communities no one cares. Even this report didn't emphasize that the citizens had the right to refuse these searches.

Look at those cops, running away like scared little girls. Disgusting.

The article doesn't address one issue. How do these keystone cops get past security at Hartsfield Jackson? I have been in this airport many times. I need a boarding pass to get thru TSA security. If these folks do not have a legitimate specific arrest warrant for someone in the airport, they should not be permitted to enter airport concourses. Shame on the airport!

Wait so if I sold my Car in another state & got cash for it, then fly home & get my money taken & show “I just sold my car” but it’s just a handmade piece of paper you think they’ll take the money? How is this even allowed

Never, EVER consent to a search. FORCE them to get a warrant.

It's almost like they hate it when random people are asking them unnecessary questions instead of leaving them alone 😂😮

Same thing is done on the roadways. Seizures without base happen all the time to people who have cash on them when driving, with no evidence of illegal behavior. Just having cash gives ground for civil forfeiture to happen, and it is usually not a Federal level agency carrying out the seizure (theft).

Do NOT sign any consent form, refuse the search, and then sue for millions of tax-free dollars

Keep doing stories like this - demand accountability and transparency from the government.

A perfect example of why they are hated. They’re thieves with a badge. You and your items have gone through security already. Never consent to a search. Stand your ground. These bullies need to learn that we the people know our rights and will stand by them.

Just common thieves behind a badge. The problem with law enforcement is that good police can't or won't stop crooked law enforcement.

This happened to me at Lambert airport, I was standing in a little magazine store a DEA agent walked up to me identified himself as a DEA agent and said they would like to talk to me. They had me surround. I had no idea that these four men were DEA agents. He said don’t make a scene we won’t make a scene I said first and foremost what do you mean come take a walk with you explain to me what’s going on. You don’t just say come take a walk with you, they said something suspicious in my luggage. I don’t have to let them search it, but I will not be let on the plane and I will put out the airport. So I let them search my luggage which they already had in a hallway waiting on me crazy right they found nothing didn’t offer a apology or nothing so I told kcuf you and I hope you have a dekcuf up day

Thanks for your courage in doing that and airing this. It is a clear conflict of interest when those doing the searches receive part of the cash retrieved. If anyone else did that, they'd be arrested for theft.

This needs a ruling in the Supreme Court. This forfeiture law is being misused and is based on cases where there were ships holding barrels of alcohol contraband in a port and law enforcement could not determine who owned the ship so they could not indict the owner but "arrested" the contraband cargo. We clearly know who owns the money at the airport, the person carrying it, it's not a mystery.

These guys enjoy what they do too. It's a High! All that cash ain't accounted for either.

Judges must be held accountable for allowing this unconstitutional behaviour.