Police seize nearly £20k in cash at Luton Airport

Money taken from passengers by police. Picture: Luton Airport Police Unit

It was part of an operation to target money launderers

Police officers at Luton Airport had a successful weekend cracking down on crime after they seized thousands of pounds from passengers coming into the country.

With the help of Border Force, £19,890 and $1,500 was taken from people as they arrived in the town – not to mention the cash they had seized earlier in the day.

The unit, which is based at the airport, said: “Operation Sterling is where with the help of Border Force and our four legged friends we are able to check and seize cash from both hand and hold luggage which cannot be accounted for and, to target the individuals that are using the airport to launder their money!”

They added: “We aren’t going anywhere, and we check hold luggage too.”

Cash over £10,000 must be declared to UK customs if it is being carried between Great Britain and a country outside the UK.