Police to probe mystery £51k found in speeding car

Carlisle magistrates heard the man denied the money was his

Police have been given three months to investigate the origins of £51,000 found in a speeding car.

Cumbria Constabulary suspects the cash bundle could be linked to criminal activity.

Carlisle magistrates' court heard the car's driver took some time to stop when flagged down and then, unusually, got out and approached the police car.

He volunteered that there was nothing in the car that might interest police, the court heard.

Officers on patrol on the M6 near Penrith spotted the speeding car at midday on Wednesday.

As they signalled for the driver to pull over, he appeared to reach across to fidget with something within the car, the court heard.

When he eventually stopped, the man told police he was heading south after visiting his girlfriend in Scotland - but could not provide her name or address.

'Highly unlikely'

Police searched the car and found a carrier bag containing two sealed boxes in which there were 51 bundles of cash.

The man claimed the money was not his.

Towards the end of an interview with police, he said he had held a party at his Bradford home and suggested somebody else might have put the cash in his car.

Magistrates were told that was “highly unlikely”, given the money was predominantly in Scottish banknotes.

“It is my belief this money is criminal cash and is from - or intended in the use of - unlawful conduct in the UK,” a financial investigator told the court.

Magistrates approved seizure of the money. They granted police three months to conduct checks in order to determine whether the money is linked to illegal activity.