Olympic Fin. Grp., Inc. v. State
| Decision Date | 17 September 2021 |
| Docket Number | Court of Appeals Case No. 21A-CR-1017 |
| Citation | 176 N.E.3d 571 |
| Parties | OLYMPIC FINANCIAL GROUP, INC., Appellant-Defendant, v. STATE of Indiana, Appellee-Plaintiff. |
| Court | Indiana Appellate Court |
Attorneys for Appellant: Andrielle M. Metzel, Nadine E. McSpadden, Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP, Indianapolis, Indiana
Attorneys for Appellee: Theodore E. Rokita, Attorney General of Indiana, Tyler G. Banks, Deputy Attorney General, Indianapolis, Indiana
[1] Olympic Financial Group, Inc. ("Olympic") is a Money Services Business conducting business in several states, which involves physically transporting currency from these states to the location of Olympic's bank by using couriers. Two such couriers were pulled over as part of a routine traffic stop. The officer told the men he would be issuing the driver a warning, but because of some inconsistent answers provided by the men, the officer asked for consent to search the vehicle, which the driver gave. During the search, the officer found a suitcase, and after the driver opened the suitcase, it was found to contain $709,880 in U.S. currency. No criminal charges were filed, but the State seized the cash and filed a motion to turn the money over to the federal government, which the trial court granted. Olympic now appeals, arguing that the search was unlawful and that, even if the search was lawful, the seizure of the cash was unlawful because the State failed to show a nexus between the cash and any crime.
[2] We reverse and remand.
[3] Olympic, headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, is a Money Services Business ("MSB"), as defined by the Bank Secrecy Act, which is administered by the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. Appellant's App. Vol. 2 at 22-23, 29. Olympic is registered with the U.S. Department of Treasury and conducts certain MSB activities, including providing money transfers, in multiple states, including Vermont and Minnesota. Id. Olympic is a legitimate business serving the need of U.S. citizens, immigrants, and residents to send money to families, friends, and associates, who are disadvantaged and vulnerable, in East African countries, including Somalia. Id. at 18. Because very few U.S. banks carry accounts for MSBs, which is an urgent issue challenging legitimate MSBs, the Department of Treasury, lawmakers, and the Department of Justice in recent years, it is necessary for MSBs like Olympic to physically transport currency from around the country to the location of Olympic's bank. Id. at 19.
[4] Abdinur Hassan ("Delegate") is Olympic's authorized delegate in Vermont. Id. at 23. Delegate accepted cash remitted by Olympic's customers in Vermont, wired the funds to the intended recipients, and then had couriers physically transport the cash to Minnesota, where Olympic's bank is located, to cover the wire transfers. Id. Olympic and Delegate engaged Mohamed Ali ("Driver") and Daud Weydow ("Passenger") (collectively, "the Couriers") to transport the cash from Vermont to Minneapolis. Id. at 18-19.
[5] On April 19, 2021, the Couriers were driving from Vermont to Minneapolis, transporting the cash from Delegate to Olympic headquarters.1 Id. The Couriers had stopped overnight in Columbus, Ohio, as they had been instructed to do. Id. at 10. The Couriers, who are both legal Somalian immigrants with a limited ability to speak and understand English, were traveling on I-65 through Jasper County, Indiana when Lake County Detective Rex Ibarra ("Detective Ibarra"), who was patrolling in his unmarked vehicle, observed them traveling northbound in the right lane. Id. at 8. Detective Ibarra noticed that the vehicle was "going slower than the normal flow of traffic" and "drift[ed] over the solid white fog line hitting the rumble strips." Id. Detective Ibarra also observed Driver with "his hands at a ten two position on the steering wheel[,] stiffed [sic] armed[,] locked at the elbows and back rigid," and the "front seat [P]assenger look away" from the detective. Id. Detective Ibarra began to follow the vehicle and observed the vehicle again drift to the right and drive on the white solid fog line. Id. He also observed the "[P]assenger recline his seat than [sic] look over at [the detective] than [sic] immediately lay back down." Id. Detective Ibarra then activated his emergency lights and initiated a traffic stop. Id.
[6] When Detective Ibarra approached the vehicle from the passenger side, he noticed a large red suitcase in the back seat area of the vehicle, which he found "odd" because in his experience, "[m]ost individuals place their luggage in the rear of the vehicle." Id. at 8-9. The Couriers furnished the detective with their Vermont drivers licenses, and the detective informed them the reason for the stop was unsafe lane movement. Id. at 9. Detective Ibarra noticed that "[P]assenger was trying to control the conversation and not allowing [D]river to speak." Id. Detective Ibarra inquired about the vehicle information, and Passenger told the detective that the vehicle was a rental and gave him the rental agreement, which was under someone else's name because that individual had used his credit card to rent the vehicle, but also told him that Passenger was listed as the secondary driver. Id.
[7] At that point, Detective Ibarra asked Driver to come back to the police vehicle, so that the detective could conduct a check of Driver's license and asked Passenger to stay behind. Id. Passenger asked if Detective Ibarra needed his license, and the detective took Passenger's license to perform a check. Id. Detective Ibarra conducted a check of the driver's licenses of the Couriers, both of which "came back clear and valid." Id. Detective Ibarra asked Driver where they were coming from and where their destination was, and when Driver told him that they were traveling from Vermont to Minnesota, the detective concluded that "the travel route doesn't make sense." Id. Detective Ibarra inquired as to what the purpose of the trip, and Driver informed him it was to visit family and that they would be staying a day or two. Id. During this questioning, Detective Ibarra's K-9 partner was present in the vehicle.2 Id. at 11.
[8] Detective Ibarra told Driver he would be issued a warning for the traffic violation and that he was going to head back to the Couriers’ vehicle to return Passenger's driver's license. Id. The detective left Driver in the police vehicle with the K-9 and returned Passenger's license, asking him the same questions about the Couriers’ travel. Id. Passenger provided answers consistent with those given by Driver. Id.
[9] Detective Ibarra returned to his police vehicle and issued Driver a warning for his traffic violation. Id. As Driver was exiting the police vehicle, the detective asked him if there were any illegal narcotics in the vehicle; the driver "maintained eye contact and stated ‘no.’ " Id. The detective then asked, "how about any large amounts of money," at which time Driver "broke eye contact[,] looked at the vehicle and paused[,] than [sic] stated ‘no.’ " Id. At that time, Detective Ibarra concluded, based on "[P]assenger trying to control the conversation[,] the implausible travel route[,] the quick turn around[,] the suitcase being on the back seat[,] also the car being rented by a third party whom [sic] was not present," that "criminal activity was afoot." Id.
[10] Detective Ibarra asked for consent to search the vehicle, and Driver gave his consent to search. Id. Another Lake County detective arrived on the scene, and the two detectives conducted a vehicle search. Id. at 10. The officers removed the suitcase in the back of the vehicle and observed that it was locked. Id. Detective Ibarra asked Driver if he had a key, and Driver responded that he did not. Id. Driver then opened the suitcase by prying a key in between the suitcase zipper track. Id. After Driver opened the suitcase, the detectives placed him back in the police vehicle. Id. Inside the suitcase, the detectives found three large, clear plastic bags containing a large amount of U.S. currency. Id. There was also another small black suitcase inside the larger suitcase, which also contained a large amount of U.S. currency inside two clear plastic bags. Id. A further search of the vehicle yielded no contraband. Id.
[11] The detectives then advised the Couriers of their Miranda rights. Id. Driver told Detective Ibarra that he was transporting the cash to Minneapolis for Delegate, whom he identified both as his cousin and his brother, explaining that in their culture, cousins are considered brothers, because "the place he was taking the money is the only institute that can wire such a large amount to Africa and there is only one bank in Africa which can receive the large amount." Id. When Detective Ibarra spoke with Passenger, he confirmed that the money came from Delegate, who was Driver's cousin. Id. When Detective Ibarra asked Passenger why they were traveling on I-65 to get to Minnesota from Vermont, Passenger responded that they were told to stay in Columbus, Ohio, and they were following the GPS. Id. Detective Ibarra then asked Driver if he knew where in Minnesota they were going, and Driver responded that he had to call to get the exact location, which the detective believed to be indicative of individuals traveling with large amounts of drugs or money where the final destination is not known to keep law enforcement from obtaining the information. Id. at 11.
[12] Detective Ibarra then retrieved his K-9 from his police vehicle, and the K-9 performed a drug sniff of the vehicle and alerted at the passenger side front door. Id. No illegal substances were found in the vehicle. Id. at 10. The detectives seized the money but did not arrest or otherwise charge the Couriers with any criminal offenses. Id. at 11, 17. The next day, on April 20, 2021, a "pad test"3 of the money "resulted in a positive manner for the presence of illegal narcotics residue" on the...
To continue reading
Request your trial