Cancun, Q.R. — Four men taken into custody for drug offences are now being investigated for black market currency exchange. The three Cubans and one Mexican were arrested from a Cancun roadside checkpoint Monday.
Police were set up on Luis Donaldo Colosio Avenue where their vehicle was stopped. Authorities seized their minivan after an inspection revealed narcotics and over $75,000 USD in cash.
Since their Monday arrests, police say all four are involved in black market currency exchange. They are also involved in transporting goods to Cuba on a weekly basis and recruiting others to expand their business.
The State Attorney General (FGE) said Tuesday that at a preventive security checkpoint set up on Luis Donaldo Colosio Avenue in Cancun, agents from the State Attorney General’s Office, in coordination with the National Defense Secretariat and the Municipal Police, arrested three Cuban men and one Mexican man.
They were arrested “for their alleged involvement in acts possibly constituting crimes in the form of drug dealing.”
Cubans Yordany “N”, Seidel Rezk “N”, Oslei “N” and Mexican Rafael “N”, were arrested from the roadside checkpoint Monday.
Their Chrysler vehicle, green, dry herb with the characteristics of marijuana and cash in the amount of $75,489 USD and 3,000 Mexican pesos, was seized at the time of their arrests.
“Initial investigations indicate that these individuals are involved in the illegal buying and selling of foreign currency, as well as various goods that they transport to Cuba on a weekly basis, generating profits without verifying the origin or source of the money,” the FGE reported.
“This month alone they have carried out this activity at least six times, entering Mexico to exchange dollars and/or euros.
“As a result of these activities, the individuals in question have established various businesses in Cuba such as an auto parts store, a pastry shop and a grocery store, and have gradually recruited more Cubans to obtain greater profits,” they said.
They have all been handed over to the Public Prosecutor’s Office for a continued investigation.
