Allen and Robyn Barrett had no idea what they held in their hands as they carried three framed paintings onto the set of Antiques Roadshow being taped at an auditorium in Orange County, California. One thing is certain: the paintings are basically worthless. What was found tucked away behind the dry mounting was another story.

“I told the wife we should bring them on the show, thinking it would really be something if they were valuable!,” said an excited Allen Barrett. “We bought these neat paintings from a vendor selling out of a van on a street corner in San Diego about two years back. We really loved the vivid colors and thought they would look good in the hallways of our home.”

Lynn Brock, an appraiser on the show, didn’t share the Barretts’ enthusiasm.

“These are not worth anything beyond their utilitarian value as tacky wall art,” said the snooty Brock. “They were likely painted by some kid in a Mexican sweatshop. I hope you didn’t pay too much for them.”

And I hope you don’t let any of your house guests actually see these hideous things hanging on your walls, Brock didn’t add.

As Brock picked up one of the paintings, she noticed that it made a strange grainy noise, the sort of sound an Etch-a-Sketch makes when you shake it.

“Mind if I pop the back off this one to have a look?,” inquired the curious Brock.

As she pulled the cheap cardboard away, a thin white wafer-like object wrapped in cling wrap fell out.

Brock’s jaw nearly dropped to the table as she motioned for the cameraman to stop taping. The “incident” quickly drew a crowd as people from all over the auditorium came by to look at the newly-discovered bounty. An off-duty police officer working security examined it up and said it was about 60 to 70 grams of high-grade cocaine. They tore into the other two paintings only to find identical packages stashed inside.

An hour later DEA officers were swarming the site, and after a lengthy interrogation, it was determined that the Barretts were merely innocent bystanders in the whole affair, and were allowed to leave.

“I’ve always wondered why those scary-looking people in Escalades were driving by our house all the time and following us around the past couple years,” said Robyn Barrett.

“Guess we won’t be on TV afterall,” was all the long-faced Allen Barrett could say as the couple shuffled out toward the parking lot.