Another poke in the eye for treasure hunters.

[mikeraydj]

Read this story.
Fugitive treasure hunter nabbed in Florida after 2-year hunt

 

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[Charlie P. (NY)]

You pick some winners. This guy defrauded investors and skipped town with the loot he had recovered - leaving them high and dry.

I read "Ship of Gold in the Deep Blue Sea" about the loss of the USS Central America several years ago. He was bankrolled for millions by folks who expected a cut - but went amiss of registering the claim properly and refused to share with the Insurance Companies who had insured the shipment. So he grabbed what he could and skipped town.

 

[Tom_in_CA]

Yup, you pick some doozies. Thanx for the link. However, this is not a black eye for treasure hunters. It's a black eye for just him, doing that. What I mean is, I HIGHLY DOUBT that any casual reader reading something like that, is bound to think "durned those guys who hunt parks with metal detectors". It has next to nothing to do with the type hunting, or business practices, that the average md'r does. Nor do I think anyone would read that, and somehow come away with a dis-like for regular coin/jewelry hunters. That's simply a case of business fraud, and has nothing to do with the concept of detecting itself.

 

[Charlie P. (NY)]

On the other hand - if members here give me five million dollars to go hunt beaches in Florida I promise to return to them 50% of everything I find; up to and including $25,000,000. That's 400% return on investment!

I promise.

 

[Limitool]

On the other hand - if members here give me five million dollars to go hunt beaches in Florida I promise to return to them 50% of everything I find; up to and including $25,000,000. That's 400% return on investment!

I promise.

Stop by here on the way down Charlie...

This guy gives ALL TREASURE HUNTERS a very bad name by defrauding all the investors. I'd like to know where it's all at now.

 

[Charlie P. (NY)]

He did spend a ton of money developing the camera sled and recovery arm/remote and sending ships to map the site. But the investments were part of whayt may turn out to be a Ponzi scheme to pay loans and draw larger loans. But he also didn't have a sound claim to the wreck. So the investors shelled out for the recovery and Thompson grabbed as much of what had been salvaged before the courts turned over the site to another recovery firm.

 

[CincinnatiKid]

Good, bad or indifferent, (probably bad), for Treasure Hunters, I found the article interesting.
Indeed, where is the loot?!
Peace ✌

 

[allen]

I dont see how the insurance company could try to claim it was their gold?

 

[Nugs Bunny]

I didn't read the article yet but they are running it on Yahoo News and they call him a treasure hunter. It's not what was actually true... it's what the media reported as truth... that's what the general population will remember.

 

[signal]

On the other hand - if members here give me five million dollars to go hunt beaches in Florida I promise to return to them 50% of everything I find; up to and including $25,000,000. That's 400% return on investment!

I promise.

Well you got competition. I will do even better than Charlie's deal. Give me $5M and I will return 100% of everything I find, up to UNLIMITED .
Heck I'll do it for $4M.............ok $3.5M...........

 

[signal]

I dont see how the insurance company could try to claim it was their gold?

Gold shipments, like the shipment of anything, can be insured. When the gold was lost, an insurance company paid out money. Now that the gold is found, the insurance companies wants a cut. Even though it was lost, it was clearly owned by people. Those people were made at least somewhat whole. And based on how the policy is written, the ownership or partial ownership may now be in the hands of the insurance company.

Another reason why its not good to speak up about everything you find. Not sure how this cat blew through $12M+. I mean, I realize a recovery can be expensive, but that just seems a bit much.

 

[Msbeepbeep]

There are all kinds of treasure hunters we are not in the same league as Tommy Thomson. Besides there are several of the good ones to compare ourselves to.

12M spent he must have lived one heck of a rich life style! Didn't he have a wife or GF that disappeared with him?

 

[Peyton Manning]

anyone seen squiggy lately?

 

[bigfoot1]

that guy is prolly gonna die from the worlds largest boil...on his face...carma is great that way.Just another wall st.rip off type

 

[pepperj]

Seems that everyone thinks this poor guy spent the 12 million living the high life. But this article said that the bulk of the finds were sold to a marketing company in 2000 for $50 million, so maybe had a little better lifestyle than one would think. I'm sure if he's as smart as the FBI says he is then a little offshore account somewhere will be holding something for him.
Fugitive treasure hunter caught after years in hiding | New York Post

 

[Rodbuster209]

A year or so after they went public with the discovery, at the California state fair they had an exhibit of some of the gold recovered, it was displayed in a vault designed to look like a ship where you looked through portholes to view the treasure, it was incredible! Security was high, security guards with uzi's or similar machine guns. What I remember seeing was stacks of $20.00 gold pieces, a brick that was a little smaller than a shoebox that they said weighed 80 pounds,numerous pieces of the privately minted coins. It was defineatly worth the wait in line to see it!

 

[ARC]

Seems that everyone thinks this poor guy spent the 12 million living the high life. But this article said that the bulk of the finds were sold to a marketing company in 2000 for $50 million, so maybe had a little better lifestyle than one would think. I'm sure if he's as smart as the FBI says he is then a little offshore account somewhere will be holding something for him.
Fugitive treasure hunter caught after years in hiding | New York Post

#1. IF he was smart... which he is not... he would have paid the investors.
#2. IF he was smart ... he would not stayed in the country after pulling what he did.
#3. IF he was smart... he would not have been caught... Especially so soon.

 

[Limitool]

#1. IF he was smart... which he is not... he would have paid the investors.
#2. IF he was smart ... he would not stayed in the country after pulling what he did.
#3. IF he was smart... he would not have been caught... Especially so soon.

While I think he is an ass.... I do believe he is VERY smart. But... I've seen some real smart folks do some real stupid things. We all have.

 

[ARC]

While I think he is an ass.... I do believe he is VERY smart. But... I've seen some real smart folks do some real stupid things. We all have.

Agreed... but what he did defies general logic.
Greed... pure and simple...
This is not the "trait" of a smart man... this is the trait of a...
#1. sick mind.
#2. A manipulative mind... and if smart would have actually pulled it off. in the sense walk scott free.
#3. Someone who just does not give a %^$*.... about anyone but themselves... which now has come to bite him in the ass.

Anyone over the age of 40 should be well versed in this.
Dumb people do dumb stuff under the disguise of being smart through lies and manipulation... not smarts.
It did not take much to put this deal together in the beginning...
The years of "his" discovery were rampant with investors...
anyone with a boat and gear could get money in late 80's thanks to my good friend MEL.

 

[ARC]

OH and one more thing...
This guy was no treasure hunter...
he was a get rich at all cost schemer lamer...
He should NEVER be called this.