Federal agents seize tons of illegal coins in Indiana raid

Federal agents raided the headquarters of a group that produces illegal currency and puts it in circulation, seizing gold, silver and two tons of copper coins featuring Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul.

Agents also took records and computers and froze the bank accounts at the “Liberty Dollar” headquarters during the raid Thursday, said Bernard von NotHaus, founder of the National Organization for the Repeal of the Federal Reserve Act & Internal Revenue Code.

The organization, which is critical of the Federal Reserve, has repeatedly clashed with the federal government, which contends that the coins it produces are illegal. NORFED claims its Liberty Dollars are inflation free and can restore stability to financial markets by allowing commerce based on a currency that does not fluctuate in value like the U.S. dollar.

“They’re running scared right now, and they had to do something,” Von NotHaus said Friday. “I’m volunteering to meet the agents and get arrested so we can thrash this out in court.”

Paul’s campaign said it had not authorized production of the Ron Paul dollars.

“We have no connection with that,” said Jesse Benton, a campaign spokesman for Paul.

NORFED says it has produced an estimated $20 million of its own paper currency in the past two decades, claiming its $1, $5 and $10 denominations were backed by silver stored in Idaho.