BOSTON—A Brazilian man arrested in connection with the discovery of about $20 million in cash hidden inside a box spring in a Massachusetts apartment has been held without bail.
A judge on Monday ruled that 28-year-old Cleber Rene Rizerio Rocha is a flight risk and held him on a charge of conspiring to commit money laundering.
Rocha was arrested this month when the money was discovered in a Westborough apartment.
Photo of $20M seized in box spring following arrest of Brazilian national in scheme to launder proceeds of TelexFree https://t.co/ulmFXtI9mr pic.twitter.com/0MTHxjaVZL
— U.S. Attorney MA (@DMAnews1) January 23, 2017
Prosecutors say Rocha was part of a scheme to transfer millions of dollars to Brazil by laundering the cash through Hong Kong. The money was from TelexFree, a defunct internet phone company authorities say was a massive pyramid scheme.
The Boston Herald reports that Rocha’s lawyer argued that his client had no criminal record and should be granted bail with GPS monitoring.
