Philly court finds nearly $1M sitting in escrow

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Crime victims in Philadelphia will be getting some long-due restitution from nearly $1 million confiscated from almost 4,500 drug busts and other crimes since 2005.

The cash has been sitting in escrow in a city Police Department bank account.

But the department had no clear indication about who should get the money because of poor record-keeping by the now-disbanded Clerk of Quarter Sessions Office.

Some of the confusion is clearing up now that the clerk’s duties were absorbed into the city’s court system in recent months.

Not every case involves restitution, and it has yet to be determined how many people would receive money.