$60,000 in suspected drug money found in FedEx package in South Bend

("special delivery" by frankieleon, CC BY 2.0 )

An employee at the FedEx Ship Center on Lincoln Way West in South Bend was apparently right to be suspicious about a package.

Indiana State Police were called on May 1 to the shipping center after a woman reported a “nervous” man dropped off a package that she believes smelled like marijuana, according to the South Bend Tribune.

The package was completely taped shut and sealed, which police say is a common method to try to prevent drug dogs from detecting what’s inside. The tactic didn’t work, as a K9 was dispatched and alerted officers to the suspicious package.

The nervous man was called and, with nerves still allegedly in his voice, claimed he didn’t know why a dog would alert officers to the package. He claimed it was a board game called “Stow and Go” he was mailing to a friend in California.

He was partially right. Officers say they opened the package and found a “Stow and Go” box inside. However, they also allegedly found $59,980 wrapped in four vaccum-sealed plastic bags inside the box.

No arrests have yet been made. The money was turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration.