HIDALGO — A Reynosa man was detained and charged with money laundering last week after a local task force member and U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers discovered a large amount of cash inside his vehicle as he attempted to travel into Mexico.
HIDALGO — A Reynosa man was detained and charged with money laundering last week after a local task force member and U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers discovered a large amount of cash inside his vehicle as he attempted to travel into Mexico.
Juan Diaz Segura, 33, of Reynosa, Tamps., was arrested after a San Juan task force officer, with the help of CBP officers at the bridge, found $31,000 in cash concealed inside his vehicle after he failed to declare the money, the complaint states.
Last Wednesday officers working the Hidalgo-Reynosa International Bridge referred Diaz for a secondary inspection where they discovered the tightly wrapped cash inside the vehicle after Diaz failed to declare the cash, the complaint states.
Diaz drew the attention of CBP officers after he began fidgeting inside his 2007 Ford Focus, the complaint states.
“CBP officers noticed Diaz nervous with his left hand tightly grabbing the top of the steering wheel and with his head straight forward avoiding eye contact,” the complaint states. “Diaz continued to show signs of nervousness as he was cracking his knuckles and looking around.”
When CBP officers conducted the secondary search they discovered four tightly wrapped bundles of cash wrapped in cellophane and duct tape inside the dashboard behind the radio totaling $21,000, and another $10,000 was found concealed under the center console by the gear shift, the complaint stats.
Diaz was booked into the county jail Friday and had his bond set at $20,000 on one count of money laundering, a third-degree felony, according to jail records.
If convicted of the charge, Diaz faces between two and 10 years in prison.
