Once money is seized, it is VERY HARD to get the USG to give it back.
We had a guy in the Army who was, for some reason, moving across country and instead of electronically switching banks - decided to travel with $26K in cash.
I do not know why but he got pulled over and the cash was seized as the state troopers assumed he was up to no good. The man was NOT arrested and was not charged with any crimes.
It's called "Civil Asset Forfeiture" and it has become
very controversial. In general, the government (i.e. - local/state police, FBI) can immediately seize assets from suspected illegal activity (typically drugs). For example, if a person is seen leaving a drug-lord's hideout with a duffel bag full of cash, they can seize the money to help stop the illegal activity. In that regard it has been very successful.
The kicker is this - the person carrying the cash doesn't have to break any laws to have the money seized. Just the suspicion is sufficient. And, once the money is seized, the owner has to prove the money was 'innocent' before getting it back. People have the protection of 'innocent until proven guilty', but property (i.e. - cash) does not.
Because of this, some unscrupulous police have taken to seizing any large quantities of cash found in ordinary traffic stops on the belief that anyone carrying that much cash is up to no good in some way. And, if uncontested, they get to keep the cash, thus providing a great incentive to continue the behavior.
