Currency exchange leads to robbery arrest at Texarkana business

TEXARKANA, Texas – A robbery charge has been leveled against a man who allegedly attempted to walk out of Vero’s Latino Store with an extra $1,100 in $100 bills he gained control of during an attempted currency exchange earlier this month.

Vasile Anghel, 33, allegedly asked a clerk at the Texarkana, Texas, store on New Boston Road to exchange $2,800 in $50s for $100s on Oct. 8, according to a probable cause affidavit filed in Bowie County.

The clerk reportedly gave Anghel 28 $100s, which Anghel then allegedly asked to trade for Mexican pesos.

The clerk was unable to complete the foreign currency exchange, and somehow Anghel ended up with $1,100 in $100s in addition to the $2,800 he brought with him to the store, the affidavit said.

Anghel was confronted about the missing cash on the spot, but allegedly denied he had the money before attempting to leave “in a fast-paced walk.”

A customer who was dining in the store’s restaurant seating called 911 as the events unfolded. Footage from a surveillance camera was observed by officers responding from the Texarkana, Texas, Police Department.

The footage allegedly showed Anghel shoving a second store employee on his way out the door, causing her to stumble backward, the affidavit said. Anghel allegedly walked out of Vero’s with the cash, but returned moments later.

“Shortly after exiting the store, Anghel is seen coming back to the counter where the money is exchanged,” the affidavit said. “Anghel is clearly seen discarding the money onto the floor and acting as if the money had been there the whole time.”

Anghel was arrested for robbery at the store.

He is currently free on a $150,000 bond, according to the Bowie County Sheriff’s Office.

If convicted of robbery, he faces two to 20 years in prison.

The case has been assigned to 102nd District Judge Jeff Addison. No attorney of record was listed Thursday for Anghel.