Panama seizes Learjet, imprisons 2 Houston pilots

[Judi Lynn]

Panama seizes Learjet, imprisons 2 Houston pilots
$2.3 million in cash found on upscale aircraft
By DANE SCHILLER
HOUSTON CHRONICLE
May 20, 2011, 6:53PM

Two Houston-area pilots are imprisoned in Panama after the Learjet they were flying was found to be carrying $2.3 million in cash.

The plane is owned by the president of a small Houston oil and gas exploration company who said Thursday that the men have been wrongfully detained, as they didn't know about the money. The money belongs to a passenger who chartered the aircraft to fly from Honduras to Panama, he said.

The upscale Learjet, which seats seven, has remained in the custody of the Panamanian government since it was stopped May 7.

"The accusation is drug- related. That is why they are being held," said Blakenergy chief David Blake, who owns the plane as part of his separate aviation company.

"I have my attorney down in Panama at the moment to do every thing he can to first and foremost release the pilots," Blake said. "They have families."

More:
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/7574330.html