United States v. Approximately $1.67 Million (US) in Cash, Stock, & Other Valuable Assets Held by or At: 1) Total Aviation Ldt.

Daniel Den Hartog, a twice-convicted drug smuggler and trafficker who had on deposit in certain Cayman Island bank accounts $1.67 million in alleged drug trafficking proceeds, appeals the grant of summary judgment in favor of the United States in its civil forfeiture action filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. We must decide whether (1) the district court applied the correct jurisdictional standard and properly found that it had in rem jurisdiction over the forfeited funds; (2) the government met its burden of demonstrating probable cause to seize the funds, so as to warrant summary judgment; and (3) the five-year delay between the government’s seizure of the funds in August 1993 and the filing of this action in June 1998 violated Hartog’s due process rights. Because we conclude that jurisdiction properly lies in the Northern District of California, that Hartog failed to adduce a genuine issue of material fact that the funds derived from legitimate sources, and that Hartog suffered no prejudice due to the government’s delay, we affirm the district court.

I. BACKGROUND

Hartog’s entanglement in the drug trade stretches back nearly…