A deputy stopped a car with expired tags. Then he saw something surprising inside

Expired registration tags and a traffic stop early Monday led a Tuolumne County sheriff’s deputy to find methamphetamine and an automatic teller machine stolen from Copperopolis.

Irving Gallego, 50, and Teresa Abreo, 37, both of Columbia, were found in the white Chevrolet Envoy with the expired registration, according to a news release from the Sheriff’s Department.

The deputy pulled over the sport utility vehicle along Rawhide Road in Jamestown. Sheriff’s officials said the deputy found in the vehicle the ATM and about 35 grams of methamphetamine, along with small plastic bags and a digital weight scale.

Gallego told investigators that he took the ATM from behind a Cruisers gas station in Copperopolis, according to sheriff’s officials.

Gallego and Abreo were arrested on suspicion of drug possession and transporting drugs for sale.

Sheriff’s officials on Monday afternoon continued to investigate the circumstances surrounding the ATM theft, which could result in an additional criminal charge.

This story was originally published August 20, 2018 at 4:50 PM.