Crime & Safety

Border Patrol: $43K Found Hidden in Car Trunk

U.S. Border Patrol allegedly recovered $43,000 in undeclared U.S. currency during a traffic stop Monday on Interstate 15, near Gopher Canyon Road, according to an agency spokeswoman.

U.S. Border Patrol agents patrolling Interstate 15 Monday between Escondido and Temecula apprehended a man suspected of smuggling undeclared U.S. currency.

Agents stopped the driver of a 2000 Mercury Marquis at about 1:30 p.m. Monday near the Gopher Canyon Road exit from Interstate 15, according to Mary Beth Caston, a spokeswoman for the agency.

A routine traffic stop was conducted because the driver, later determined to be a 55-year-old male citizen of Mexico, was allegedly exhibiting suspicious behavior, Caston wrote in a news release.

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Agents questioned the man and subsequently searched his vehicle, allegedly discovering $43,000 in undeclared cash inside a cardboard box beneath a false floor in the trunk, according to the news release.

The suspect was turned over to Homeland Security Investigations and the vehicle and cash were seized by the U.S. Border Patrol, Caston wrote.


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