Two arrests have been made following an investigation in Salford, Greater Manchester.
Police investigating money laundering hit the jackpot when they stopped a car carrying almost a quarter of a million pounds.
Officers found a staggering £225,000 stuffed inside cardboard boxes when they pulled over the car on Thursday night at a busy roundabout in Salford, Greater Manchester.
The money was recovered as part of the Greater Manchester Police’s (GMP) Operation Falcon, reports Manchester Evening News
In a statement, GMP said: “Two men have been arrested on suspicion of money laundering after the large quantity of money was found in two cardboard boxes after the vehicle was stopped near Pendleton Island at around 8pm on 6 October 2022.
“The arrests follow an investigation by GMP’s Money Laundering Team within the Economic Crime and Cyber Unit (ECU) in partnership with Roads Policing as part of Operation Falcon, a collaboration between the ECU and Special Operations to tackle money laundering across Greater Manchester.
“Two men, aged 22 and 60, remain in custody for questioning.”
Temporary Detective Superintendent Joseph Harrop, of GMP’s Economic Crime and Cyber Unit, said: “This was an excellent example of partnership working between the ECU and Roads Policing to recover and detain what is suspected to be criminally derived cash from the streets of Manchester.
“This seizure is another positive result for Operation Falcon that has seen more than £800,000 seized since it was launched in May this year.
“Cash-based money-laundering often funds serious and organised crime, and Operation Falcon will continue to target those suspected to be involved.
“No matter how hard attempts are made to hide the money, we will find it and reinvest it back into the communities of Greater Manchester.”
It comes as luxury watches and around £100,000 in cash were seized last month in Greater Manchester as part of Operation Falcon.
GMP arrested two people on that occasion, one in Cheetham Hill and another in Mossley, Tameside.