TRASH AND CARRY: Dump Besieged After USD 75K Found In Old Wardrobe
A public dump has been flooded with fortune hunters after at least USD 75,000 was found in an old wardrobe being crushed on the tip.
The gold rush started when a bulldozer ran over the discarded closet and saw dollar bills flying into the air in the city of Las Parejas in the northern Argentine province of Santa Fe.
As he inspected them, he saw they were perfectly preserved USD 100 bills, apparently stashed by the wardrobe’s last owner.
Now officials have closed the tip after locals flooded onto the site looking for cash.
Local media report that more than USD 75,000 (GBP 83,000) has been found already.
One resident Federico Baez, who claimed some of the loot last week, said he is sure there is more money buried in the site.
He told local media: “A colleague got out of his truck and saw a USD-100 bill on the ground, all ironed out.
“It caught our attention because it was impeccable.”
He went on: “We gathered together around USD 10,000 between six of us.
“Then another guy came along and found USD 25,000, he was luckier than us. I think there has to be more buried there.”
After the authorities seized control of the tip, residents have been left guessing how much money is there and where it could have all come from.
Many believe the cash belonged to an old lady without any children who died recently.
They say new residents at her old home threw out the wardrobe when they moved in.
Due to high inflation in Argentina for many years, it has become common for citizens to hoard their cash at home due to a general distrust in banks.
City mayor Horacio Compagnucci called the cash grab at the tip “green madness.”
He said: “I am convinced that all this green madness is happening because they found dollar bills. In the context of the country going through a bad economic period, the word ‘dollar’ is currently on everyone’s lips.”
Excitement over the cash has prompted Argentine netizens to produce a series of memes, some of which depict President Alberto Fernandez and Vice President Cristina Kirchner scouring the dump for cash for the country’s dwindling coffers.
