Dulles CBP K9s, Officers Sniff Out Over $171K in Unreported Currency

CBP currency canines Fuzz and Cigy alerted in six of the 10 seizures

STERLING, Va. — U.S. Customs and Border Protection currency detector dogs Fuzz and Cigy lent a paw in helping CBP officers detect and seize over $30,406 in unreported currency this weekend and $171,016 since March 5 at Washington Dulles International Airport from travelers who violated federal currency reporting laws.

On Saturday, CBP officers seized $13,046 from a traveler departing to Brussels, Belgium, and on Sunday, CBP officers seized $17,360 from a traveler departing to Amman, Jordan, after currency detector dog Fuzz, a four-year-old yellow Labrador Retriever, alerted to bulk currency in the traveler’s possession.

These seizures follow a busy month of currency reporting violations in March in which CBP officers seized $140,610 collectively during eight incidents. In those cases, four travelers were departing to Accra, Ghana, two to Lagos, Nigeria, and two to Seoul, South Korea.

In six of these 10 seizures, CBP currency detector dogs Fuzz or Cigy, a 2-year-old male German shepherd mix, alerted CBP officers to the presence of bulk currency.

Unreported bulk currency may sometimes be the proceeds of illegal activity, such as financial fraud and money scams. Greed may also cause some travelers to smuggle unreported currency that they may have lawfully attained to shield it from family or business partners.

“Federal currency reporting laws help CBP combat illicit financial activity at our nation’s ports of entry, which contributes to the financial security of our nation and to the protection of our most vulnerable citizens from becoming unwitting victims of financial crime,” said Christine Waugh, CBP’s Area Port Director for the Area Port of Washington, D.C. “CBP officers balance our homeland security mission with facilitating lawful international travel and our highly trained detector dogs help CBP officers to quickly find that proverbial unlawful needle in the haystack.”

CBP reminds travelers that there is no limit to how much currency or other monetary instruments travelers may bring to or take out of the United States. However, federal law [31 USC 5316] requires travelers to report all currency and monetary instruments of $10,000 or greater to a CBP officer.

Travelers possessing more than $10,000 will need to complete a U.S. Treasury Department Report of International Transportation of Currency or Monetary Instruments form [FINCEN 105].

To streamline compliance, travelers can now complete and submit FINCEN form 105 electronically at https://fincen105.cbp.dhs.gov prior to a CBP arrival or departure inspection.

CBP officers allow travelers multiple opportunities to truthfully report all currency in their possession through both a verbal and a written declaration.

Travelers who fail to truthfully report all their currency risk severe consequences, including missing their flight and interrupting vacation plans, to seeing all their currency seized by a CBP officer, to facing potential criminal prosecution for bulk currency smuggling.

CBP officers and agents seized an average of $183,000 in unreported or illicit currency every day along our nation’s borders during fiscal year 2023. See what else CBP accomplished during "A Typical Day" in 2023.

CBP's border security mission is led at our nation’s Ports of Entry by CBP officers and agriculture specialists from the Office of Field Operations. CBP screens international travelers and cargo and searches for illicit narcotics, unreported currency, weapons, counterfeit consumer goods, prohibited agriculture, invasive weeds and pests, and other illicit products that could potentially harm the American public, U.S. businesses, and our nation’s safety and economic vitality.

Follow the Director of CBP’s Baltimore Field Office on X at @DFOBaltimore for breaking news, current events, human interest stories and photos, and CBP’s Office of Field Operations on Instagram at @cbpfieldops.