Plumber Discovers Megachurch Cash Stash

Plumbers make strange discoveries in the homes and buildings they service all the time. But rarely are they ever as lucrative as the secret stash a plumber stumbled upon a few weeks ago in Houston, Texas.

The plumber, identified by Houston media as Justin Cauley, made the find while removing tile from a bathroom wall at Lakewood Church, the megachurch of celebrity pastor and televangelist Joel Osteen.

As the plumber peeled tiles and insulation away from the wall, envelopes filled with cash began to fall out. While the church hasn’t said how much money was recovered, the Houston Police Department released a statement confirming it was a considerable sum, possibly related to a reported theft from the church seven years ago.

Police were called November 10 to investigate. News of the finding did not become public until weeks later when a man identifying himself as the plumber called into a local Houston radio station morning show.

“There was a loose toilet in the wall and we removed the tile … Went to go remove the toilet and I moved some insulation away and about 500 envelopes fell out of the wall, and I was like, ‘Oh wow,’ ” the caller said, according to CNN.

Burglary and theft officers for the Houston PD are investigating a connection between the money found and a 2014 report of $600,000 in tithes stolen from Lakewood Church. The church said it’s cooperating with the police investigation.

Cauley is set to receive a $20,000 reward for his discovery.