For Immediate Release

Albuquerque, NM - On December 7, 2011 the United States Marshals Service auctioned a 1967 Ford Shelby GT500E Cobra in an online auction where the final bidding reached a feverish pace at the final closing moments and sold at a final bid of $132,610.00. The Shelby Cobra is an iconic muscle car and this particular one was seized during a Federal Bureau of Investigation case involving, money laundering, bribery, mail fraud, and a kick-back scheme which led to the administrative forfeiture of the Cobra. The Online Auction was conducted through the website www.appletowing.com, and had over 100 participants. This particular car was also featured on the National Geographic Channel in an pilot episode titled Seized and Sold in May 2011.

Proceeds from U.S. Marshals’ auctions are used to compensate victims of crime and fund law enforcement initiatives. In addition, the funds are often shared with state and local law enforcement agencies that participated in the investigations leading to the forfeiture of the assets. “This important program enhances law enforcement cooperation between state, local and federal agencies, as well as strips criminals of their ill-gotten gains,” said New Mexico’s U.S. Marshal, Conrad Candelaria. The items up for auction once belonged to individuals and companies involved in criminal activity. A court of law has ordered these particular assets to be forfeited as ill-gotten gains.

The U.S. Marshals Service is the primary custodian of seized and forfeited property for the Department of Justice’s Asset Forfeiture Program. More than 8,400 items of forfeited property are sold annually with gross sales in excess of $100 million.

Additional information about the U.S. Marshals Service can be found at http://www.usmarshals.gov.

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America’s Oldest Federal Law Enforcement Agency