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A Southmost couple is facing criminal charges after Harlingen police found that they had more than $13,000 dollars in cash during a traffic stop.

Harlingen police arrested 51-year-old Antonio Nieto and 51-year-old Rosalva Nieto on money laundering charges on Monday.

Investigators with the Harlingen Police Department released mugshots but not information regarding the case.

Public records obtained by Action 4 News on Friday show that an officer saw the couple's Trailblazer following another vehicle too closely around 4:30 p.m. Monday.

The officer pulled over the couple on the southbound lanes of Expressway 77 near the Tyler/Harrison Exit.

The couple provided conflicting stories about where they had been and why they had gone to a gas station in Combes where Antonio allegedly met with a man from Kingsville.

The officer reported finding $6,500 dollars in cash bundled in rubber bands inside a plastic WalMart bag.

Antonio Nieto allegedly had another $4,000 in cash inside one of the Southmost man's boots.

According to the records, investigators found a total of $13,718 dollars in cash during the incident.

Antonio Nieto claimed he made the money selling horses at $700 dollars each but Rosalva said they had six horses but didn't breed them or sell them.

The officer noted that Antonio didn't seem familiar with horse terminology and that the couple's SUV had religious symbols of the Virgin Mary both inside and outside the vehicle.

Rosalva Nieto had a sticker of the Virgin Mary on her driver's license.

Investigators wrote in a report that, "It is common for offenders especially drug offenders to use religious emblems inside and outside their vehicles to have the appearance to law enforcement that they are law abiding citizens."

The couple not immediately be reached for comment but public records show that the couple live on the 3200 block of Southmost Road in Brownsville.

Other records show that a man with Antonio Nieto's name and date of birth had a criminal history including marijuana and public lewdness going back to 1985.