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Stashed Away.
Dateline: Pasadena, California.
A car purchased at a U.S. marshal's auction four
years ago had a hidden surprise for its new owner: 119 pounds of surprise
to be exact.
The not so little surprise came in the form of over
100 pounds of marijuana hidden away in the bumpers of the car.
And when did the buyer, Jose Aguado Cervantes, find out about the hidden
contraband? When he was stopped at the U.S.-Mexican border three months
later. Cervantes, spent three months in jail as a result. Not good.
Cervantes is now seeking damages for the government's error, alleging
negligence, false imprisonment and false arrest. While an appeals court in
Pasadena said that he cannot recover damages for false arrest and
imprisonment, his negligence claim against the federal government "is an
entirely different matter."
The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals said the government's argument
against Cervantes' negligence claim is "patently without merit" and "so
off-the-mark as to be embarrassing."
"Cervantes remained similarly unaware of the contraband until its
discovery by U.S. customs agents as he tried to cross the U.S. border on
Oct. 22, 1999," the appeals court said. "Although Cervantes denied
knowledge of the marijuana and informed agents that he had purchased the
vehicle at a U.S. marshal's auction, he was arrested and incarcerated."
Government officials eventually dropped the charges, but not before
Cervantes spent time in jail awaiting trial.
Source: AP, "Man Sues Over Car With Hidden Pot Stash," June 03, 2003.
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