An armored truck spilled its trove on a California highway Friday, sparking a cash-grab frenzy that resulted in two arrests, authorities said.
The truck’s door flew open at around 9 a.m., sending bills flying over Interstate 5 near Carlsbad, halting traffic as drivers got out of their cars to snatch what they could, according to the California Highway Patrol.
An adult couple, a man and a woman, were arrested on suspicion of taking some of the money after getting locked out of their vehicle on the roadway, the CHP said.
A video posted by on TikTok by user Demi Bagby showed drivers frantically picking up bills. Some yelped with joy while posing with their loot in the middle of the road, with traffic at a standstill.
“This is the most insane thing I’ve ever seen,” Bagby says in the video. “San Diego has shut down, literally it has shut down.”
The driver of the armored truck tried to retrieve the cash — before realizing how futile his efforts were — and then began recording those taking the money.
By around 10 a.m., CHP officers were on scene keeping drivers off the highway and picking up bills, which they placed in plastic bags, according to Fox 5 San Diego.
Law enforcement is demanding that anyone who took money from the road return it immediately. It’s not clear exactly how much cash was taken.
“If you found money on the freeway, it is not your money,” CHP Sergeant Martin said at an afternoon news conference. “It belongs to the FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation) and this armored truck and the bank. It needs to be returned.”
The vehicle, from Sectran Security, Inc., was pulled over on the highway as officials investigated how the doors opened.
Travis Fisher originally believed that there had been an accident when traffic stopped, he told Fox 5.
He said he thought drivers who were leaving their vehicles and running forward were rushing to help — before he saw all of the cash.
“There was a bunch of cars in front of me that all stopped, came to a complete stop,” he said. “I see all these things floating around and I realize it’s money. It was pretty crazy. Just everywhere, there was a sea of bills, everywhere.”
He estimated that there were thousands of dollars on the road.
The FBI has joined CHP in the investigation.