Carrying cash is one signifier of being a drug trafficker, but so is booking a last-minute or quick-return flight, according to the DEA.reveal American law enforcement’s deep access to people’s travel records, and how it uses that data to conduct targeted surveillance.
A cash seizure warrant filed by an agent with the Drug Enforcement Administration this January detailed how the agency selects candidates for further checks at the Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport. It stated that DEA and airport police investigators “often look for passengers who purchased airline tickets ‘at the last minute,’” as well as people with “uncommon travel itineraries, such as same- or next-day return flights from their destination.