$3B WWII Wreck:Treasure Hunter Says He’s Found Sunken Ship Containing $3B in Platinum Bars [Video]
A treasure hunter is claiming that he found a sunken World War II ship which contains $3 billion worth of platinum.
Greg Brooks, co-founder of Maine-based Sub Sea Research, says his salvage firm has allegedly located and identified “the world’s richest shipwreck” — the S.S. Port Nicholson — in waters off the coast of Cape Cod, Mass. That’s where the vessel is known to have gone down after being attacked by a German U-boat in June 1942 during a voyage from Britain to New York City via Halifax.
Brooks said the Port Nicholson had 71 tons of platinum that was worth $53 million at time it was attacked. The platinum was reportedly a payment from the Soviet Union to the U.S. for war supplies, he told The AP.
Although Brooks has not obtained any of the platinum from the WWII wreck as of yet, he says that he has underwater video footage which proves there are platinum bars in the ship and he he is making plans for he and his crew to hopefully begin raising the sunken treasure at the end of February.
“I’m going to get it, one way or another, even if I have to lift the ship out of the water,” Brooks said.
Despite Brooks claims to have uncovered a rare sunken treasure, experts in the field remain skeptical.
Timothy Shusta, a Tampa, Fla. attorney who represents the British government, is doubtful the ship was carrying a platinum load. He also told The AP that Britain will wait until salvage operations start before deciding whether to file a claim on the vessel’s cargo.
“We’re still researching what was on the vessel,” Shusta said. “Our initial research indicated it was mostly machinery and military stores.”
According to CBS news, Greg Brooks has been in the shipwreck business for nearly 20 years. Prior to the alleged $3B WWII wreck he claims to have found, his previous biggest discovery was from a pirate ship near Puerto Rico.
For more on Greg Brooks’ discovery of the S.S. Port Nicholson, check out the video clip below:
via IBTimes
