$100 bills floating in the air, buried under piles of garbage, or hidden in an old, discarded wardrobe. For days, various versions of a hidden treasure shook the city of Las Parejas in central Argentina.

More than $75,000 was found in an outdoor dumpster when an excavator at a construction site unexpectedly stumbled upon a furniture hideout.

Federico Báez, one of the neighbors who found some of the money last week, thinks there must be more money buried.

In recent days, authorities have closed access to the dump.

“A colleague of mine got out of the truck and saw a $100 bill on the floor. It caught our attention because it was immaculate. Each of us got involved. It was like a game to see who would get the most. He had collected $10,000 between us. Six. Then another kid came along and 25,000 He found US dollars, he was luckier. I think he should have been buried a lot more,” Báez told AFP.

In Las Parejas, the money is said to belong to a lady who recently died without leaving any children. In the city, it is believed that the new residents of the house hid in the false bottom of a cabinet that went into the trash after getting rid of the old furniture.

In Argentina, which has suffered from high inflation for decades, it is common for people to save in dollars and keep them in cash at home because of the insecurity created by the banks.

The city’s mayor, Horacio Compagnucci, describes the incident as “green madness”.

“I believe all this green frenzy happened because it was the coins you found. In a context where the country is not doing well economically, the word dollar is on everyone’s lips,” he told AFP.

Since 2019, increasingly restrictive exchange controls have been implemented in Argentina. Currently, the maximum amount allowed to purchase foreign currency for savings is $200 per month.

The unusual discovery of Las Parejas has also served to generate memes, among which President Alberto Fernández and Vice President Cristina Kirchner are seen digging up the dump.