Deputies find over $20,000 during I-30 traffic stop
A 50-year-old San Antonio man was charged with money laundering Wednesday evening, after deputies found more than $20,000 in cash in his possession during a traffic stop.
Hopkins County Sheriff ’s deputies reported stopping Manuel Antonio Ardon at 5:23 p.m. May 31 on Interstate 30 west at mile marker 140 for a defective brake light and following too close to another vehicle. During the stop, the man displayed signs of deception, nervous behavior and what the deputy claimed he recognized based on his law enforcement experience and training to be potential 'signs of human smuggling, which is often done for monetary gain,” HCSO Deputy Josh Davis alleged in arrest reports.
Ardon was allegedly found to have in his possession currency that was folded and bound with a rubber band, which the deputy believed was “payment for smuggling persons,” Davis wrote in arrest reports.
Ardon reportedly gave deputies permission to search the Hyundai Santa Fe. When asked prior to the search, the San Antonio resident allegedly denied having any large amounts of currency in the vehicle. A suitcase found in the car contained a folded pair of shorts with a bundle of US currency in one pocket. Ardon was placed into custody at 6:18 p.m. After being read his rights, he allegedly admitted he’d provided a ride to two individuals while on his trip (the deputy did not provide any further details regarding Ardon’s trip itinerary).
Ardon was transported to Hopkins County jail. Once counted, the currency found in the car and the bundle Ardon had on him allegedly totaled approximately $21,285. The 50-year-old Honduras native was booked into the county jail at 8:29 p.m. May 31 on a money laundering charge, according to arrest reports. He remained in Hopkins County jail Friday morning, June 2, 2023, on the money laundering charge, according to HCSO jail reports.
HCSO Deputies Isaac Foley and Lt. Wade Sheets were credited with assisting on the traffic stop and subsequent arrest.
Pair jailed on meth, firearm charges
Hopkins County Sheriff ’s Sgt. Tanner Steward reported stopping Alexander Garza at 5:54 p.m. May 31 on Gilmer Street, after noticing the 43-year-old driving a 1994 Chevrolet Suburban; the sheriff ’s office noted preexisting knowledge that the man did not have a valid driver’s license. The driver allegedly immediately became agitated upon contact by the deputy; the passenger appeared agitated when he explained the cause for the stop, Steward noted in arrest reports.
Garza exited the vehicle when asked to do so. The Sulphur Springs man told the deputy he needed to be able to work in order to provide for his family. Sgt. Steward recommended the man apply for an occupational driver’s license.
When asked, Garza refused to let the deputy search the SUV. Steward then contacted Lt. Wade Sheets, who had arrived to assist, and had been speaking to the female passenger while Steward talked to the driver. The officers called for a police canine. Deputy Drew Fisher arrived with his canine partner; the police dog gave a positive alert on the Suburban. A probable search was then conducted.
Deputies reported finding a zipper pouch in the center of the front seat which contained suspected methamphetamine, a black handgun which dispatchers confirmed had been reported stolen from the Kilgore area was located between the front seats, as well as a baggy containing an additional quantity of the substance suspected to be methamphetamine. The passenger, 28-year-old Jherico Lashea Harvell of Sulphur Springs, said the firearm belonged to her. The driver was also alleged to have in his pocket a tactical pistol light which was the same type of light as on the firearm, the deputies alleged in arrest reports.
Garza was taken into custody for no driver’s license, possession of less than 1 gram of a Penalty Group 1 controlled substance in a drug-free zone due to the proximity of the stop to an alternative school and unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon; he also had two outstanding warrants for manufacture or delivery of 1 gram or more but less than 4 grams of a Penalty Group 1 controlled substance, one of which was alleged to have occurred in a drug-free zone, according to arrest reports.
Harvel was arrested for possession of less than 1 ounce of a Penalty Group 1 controlled substance in a drug-free zone and theft of a firearm.
Traffic stop reveals marijuana and meth
Deputies reported stopping Cynthia Ann Thompson at 11:16 p.m. May 31 on Houston Street at Jackson Street for not stopping at a designated stopping point. When the deputy detected a strong marijuana odor in the vehicle, the woman reportedly admitted to having one rolled up blunt in the car. She grabbed her purse when asked to exit the car; it was searched. Deputies alleged finding a brown vial containing a crystal-like substance that field-tested positive for methamphetamine and later weighed about 0.1 gram. Thompson was taken into custody. A cup in the cup holder was alleged to contain an alcoholic beverage, which was poured out. Between the console and the passenger seat, a cigar package with a cigar and a marijuana blunt were allegedly found. In the console a baggy of suspected marijuana was located, the deputy alleged in arrest reports.
“This subject stated she is a nurse and that she should not be arrested for that little amount of methamphetamine,” HCSO Lt. Wade Sheets wrote in arrest reports, which show the woman to be employed as a licensed vocational nurse at a local nursing facility.
The woman was transported to Hopkins County jail, where she was booked in at 12:14 a.m. June 1, on a possession of less than 1 gram of a Penalty Group 1 controlled substance charge, arrest reports state.