A Texas man got a bit more than he bargained for when a used car he won at an auction ended up containing 74 pounds — that’s $850,000 worth — of cocaine. According to the Houston Chronicle, the man, whose identity has been kept private, immediately alerted police when he discovered the drugs and it was seized soon after.
- It’s unclear where in the car the cocaine was kept. The man who bought the car at an auction in the Rio Grande Valley soon realized after bring the vehicle home that there was something a bit off when he found wrapped packages in a “secret compartment” of the car, according to the Webb County Sheriff’s Office. I didn’t realize cars had secret compartments, but there ya go!
- When deputies arrived, the man had found 17 packages. While it was unclear what the packages contained just by looking at them — they were wrapped tightly in black plastic and then put in clear plastic bags — it was clear that something wasn’t quite right.
- A police K-9 found even more packages. Once the police dog was brought to the scene, it located a second secret compartment in the car where officers then pulled out 17 more packages. Oh man, I bet the previous owner was none too happy about losing this one!
- The 34 bundles contained a whole lot of coke. In total, the packages contained 74.96 pounds of the white stuff, which has a street value of approximately $850,000. That’s a pretty huge amount! How on earth did this car end up at an auction?! Was it impounded? Could the precious owner really not track it down/get it back to get their goods out?
- The new owner of the car deserves a pat on the back for being so honest. “I thank and congratulate the person who alerted us to the drugs. Had he not been an honest individual, the drugs could have ended up in the wrong hands,” said Sheriff Martin Cuellar. “I encourage the public to report any crime or suspicious activity by calling our hotline at 956-415-BUST (2878). You may be eligible for a cash reward.”
