The Justice Department is seeking to permanently keep more than $3 million in coins that were struck by anti-government activists who aimed to create a new currency to compete against the greenback.

In court papers filed in federal court in North Carolina, federal prosecutors say that they need another six months to complete their criminal investigation of the citizens who play a leading role in popularizing the alternative currency, known as the Liberty Dollar.

A prosecutor for the U.S. attorney’s office in Asheville, N.C., Thomas Ascik, also sought an order that would give the government title to the more than 7 tons worth of gold, silver, and copper Liberty Dollar coins that the government seized last year in raids in Indiana and Idaho, according to court papers. Just last week, a dozen Liberty Dollar supporters filed suit in U.S. District Court in Idaho demanding the return of the seized coins.

[Editors Comment] Is it any wonder that so many people have a deep seated distrust of the federal government when they use these types of tactics. If they want to investigate possible criminal activity, that is fine, Knock your socks off! But to seize property and then try to gain title is just an arrogant abuse of power.