Brownwood Police made a traffic stop on Saturday afternoon which led to the arrest of three Cuban males on charges of engaging in organized criminal activity.
According to a Brownwood Police Department Detective Aaron Taylor, a traffic stop was made in the 500 block of W. Commerce where the three males were identified and displayed nervous behavior. After officers spoke briefly with each of the men, inconsistent stories of where they were traveling and why they were in Brownwood led officers to ask for consent to search the vehicle, police said.
As the officers searched the vehicle, they noticed tampering with the dashboard, which led them to discover in excess of 100 gift and credit/debit cards bundled and stored up under the plastic housing of the dash, police said. When questioned about the gift cards, the men gave more conflicting stories, according to Taylor.
After BPD detectives researched the gift and credit/debit cards, they discovered the cards had a value of approximately $20,000, Taylor explained. The suspects claimed to be unaware of the amount of money on the cards, said Taylor.
During the search of the vehicle, another device, a credit card decoder/incoder, was found in a hidden area of the trunk, police said.Taylor explained that criminals have begun to use gift cards to launder money from narcotics distribution or fraud rings because they can be loaded with funds and it is easier to transport bundles of cards rather than bundles of cash money. He explained that there is an ongoing investigation and that it is too early to know how extensive the money laundering operation was being operated. Transactions recorded from the gift cards may give more evidence, said Taylor.
Taylor stated that the department felt there was enough evidence to charge the suspects, identified as Bairon Julio Jimenez-Roja, Noel Frometa Espronceda, and Manuel Batista-Labrada, with money laundering and because there were at least three people involved, an additional charge of engaging in organized criminal activity was added. The suspects are each being held in the Brown County Jail in lieu of $60,000 bond.
Brownwood Police are planning to seize the vehicle along with the funds from the gift cards, according to Taylor.
