London Travelers: Don't Smell The Money

Business folk traveling to Britain are advised to keep their noses away from their money: More than 99% of banknotes circulating in London are tainted with cocaine, according to a forensic survey. More than 500 bills worth $12,700 were tested in a series of denominations at the Bank of England's returned notes center. Only four of them showed no traces of cocaine. The high percentage of drug contaminated bills is attributed to transmission of cocaine through cash sorting machines being handled by dealers or bills being handled by drug users. "Once a drug user has taken a snort, the compounds get into oils in the skin and are transferred to any notes handled," says drug analyst Joe Reevy.