A Winnipeg family is taking the federal attorney general to court over money seized by police from the ruins of their store.
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The Trinh family owned Young's Trading Company, a decades-old downtown grocery store that was gutted by fire last November.
In the smouldering rubble of the building on William Avenue, police found a large amount of cash, some of it partially burned, some of it wet. Published reports estimated the total amount at as much as $3 million.
Investigators seized the cash and called in the RCMP's proceeds-of-crime unit.
Six months later, no charges have been filed and the store's remains are no longer considered a crime scene.
Now, the store's owners are fighting to get the money back.
A lawyer for the Trinh family has said the money was a combination of store deposits and the personal life savings of the owners, who kept the money in the store's basement because they did not trust the banking system.
Officials are not convinced. The RCMP say they're still investigating whom the money belongs to. Federal tax officials are also investigating.
In court documents, the Trinh family claims police infringed on their rights by seizing property from their residence and business without permission.
In an affidavit, one of the store's owners says Winnipeg police used a blowtorch to open a safe and remove four bags of money, a bundle of currency and a safe stuffed with cash.
The family and their lawyers don't want to comment on their lawsuit, but an expert on cases of proceeds of crime said the situation is "most unusual."