Harold Stuart, a 51 year-old truck driver was carrying $170,000.00 in cash when he was arrested by Department of Public Safety officers in August of 2011 during a traffic stop on I-17. This week he was convicted on charges of Illegally Conducting an Enterprise and Money Laundering.
At the time of his arrest, Stuart, who was exhibiting nervous behavior and had irregularities in his log book, was found to be carrying the cash. The money was wrapped in yellow tape and stuffed in a duffel bag. Testing showed Stuart’s fingerprints to be on the tape and bag and a DPS canine detected the presence of narcotics. Stuart told a DPS officer that he did not know how the bag got in his truck, and he declined to make additional statements to police about the money.
In the course of their investigation, police learned that between 2008 through 2009 Stuart reported income of only $14,379.00. A review of Stuart’s financial records revealed there were large deposits of money into his Maryland bank account while he was in Jamaica. During trial, evidence was presented regarding a financial background investigation on the defendant.
Both offenses are class 3 felonies with a sentencing range of 2 to 3.5 years in prison. The judge has the discretion to sentence the defendant to probation or prison. Sentencing is scheduled for May 31, 2012.