Birmingham police find more than £150,000 in cash stored inside cardboard box

Police have seized more than £150,000 in cash which was found inside a cardboard box.

Officers from the illicit cash team intercepted a black Volvo S90 in Hockley and found a cardboard box containing £150,000 in cash in the boot. When officers searched the driver’s house, they found £16,000 in Scottish and Irish bank notes.

The suspect has now been released while police investigate further after his arrest on December 19.

West Midlands Police's Major Crime Proactive Team also recovered a loaded Walther P22 handgun in a manbag hidden in the loft of a property in Hockley. A 17-year-old boy has now been charged and is now awaiting trial.

The force's Operation Target focuses on the most serious crimes – and includes the targeting of drug dealers, firearms, money laundering, organised immigration crime and the criminal and sexual exploitation of children.The Major Crime Proactive Team has also arrested six people who were wanted as part of manhunts, which are major searches for those wanted over the most serious crimes.

What has West Midlands Police said?

Det Ch Insp Ryan Chambers said: “We’re relentlessly pursuing those involved in serious and organised crime, in all its forms, across the West Midlands.

“We’ve taken guns and cash off the streets, and have succeeded in putting some really serious criminals, who pose a real risk of harm to communities, and in particular children, behind bars.

“This work wouldn’t be possible without the help of the community. We rely on information from people, so if you know of people involved in serious and organised crime, our team will be ready to received that information in confidence and pursue them.”