Bricks of cocaine, half a million in cash found in quiet Steele Creek neighborhood

Anonymous complaints from neighbors pointed Charlotte-Mecklenburg police to a quiet street in Steele Creek, where officers say at least four people were involved with a drug trafficking ring.

Police seized about $500,000 in cash along with guns, pills and several pounds of cocaine and marijuana on Friday. The drugs had a street value of about $100,000, police said.

The suspects tried to conceal the money by wrapping stacks of cash in tape, dunking them in grease and storing them in black metal containers at the house on Hatton Cross Drive, police said.

Three men have been arrested so far and charged with several drug trafficking offenses, among other charges. The men are 30-year-old Anthony Joseph Espinal, 24-year-old Jesus Manuel Rosario and 32-year-old Socrates Jhoneril Gomez, police said.

Police are still looking for a fourth man, 21-year-old Christian Nunez.

This story was originally published November 21, 2017 at 2:56 PM with the headline "Bricks of cocaine, half a million in cash found in quiet Steele Creek neighborhood."