Seneca man forfeits nearly $18 thousand to the State

A judge has ordered a Seneca man who is a defendant in a multi-state cocaine trafficking conspiracy in Georgia to forfeit to the state of South Carolina nearly $18 thousand in cash seized from his home.  The attorney for Dwyanego Lenard Poole argued that, although the home was searched, his client was never charged with any crimes in South Carolina.  South Carolina Tenth Circuit Judge Lawton McIntosh ruled this week that the state met its burden of proof and is entitled to $17,797.00.  In a hearing in late August, McIntosh said witnesses established that Oconee County law enforcement was contacted by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation about Poole’s alleged involvement in a cocaine trafficking conspiracy. Defense attorney Gruber Sires argued for the return of the money, but McIntosh ruled that a warrant affidavit was more than sufficient to establish probable cause to search Poole’s home.