FLATONIA, Texas – Three old toy boxes were found to be hiding nearly $200,000 in cash, leading to the arrest of a McAllen man during a traffic stop on I-10, according to Fayette County Sheriff Keith Korenek.
Emundo Rendon, 64, was arrested at 12:40 p.m. Tuesday after he was initially pulled over for a traffic violation near Flatonia.
Recommended Videos
Deputies said they noticed “several criminal indicators” before receiving consent to search Rendon’s vehicle. That’s when they discovered the three toy boxes inside of a luggage bag.
The boxes were seemingly heavier than the toys that should have been in them, according to deputies, leading them to open them and discover several vacuum-sealed bundles of cash inside.
The packaging of the cash bundles was consistent “to that of drug trafficking and money laundering organizations,” according to Sheriff Korenek.
Deputies took the money to the bank, and it totaled $199,000.
Rendon was arrested and charged with money laundering greater than $150K, less than $300K, which is a second-degree felony. He was taken to the Dan R. Beck Justice Center.