Modern Buccaneer Will Remain In Jail Until He Reveals Site Of Treasure

In the late 1980s, an Ohio engineer named Tommy G. Thompson, with help from an underwater robot and more than 160 investors, found 'the largest treasure trove in American history'.

The loot was taken from the wreckage of the S.S. Central, a steamship that in 1857 was sunk during a hurricane off the coast of South Carolina, while carrying at least three tons of gold.

But having raised $12.7million (£10.23m) to find and recover the treasure, Thompson's investors expected a share of the gold, which is estimated to be worth in the region of $400 million (£322m).

According to the Washington Post, two of the biggest investors accused Thompson of selling most of the treasure without giving them any of the profits, so they took him to court in the 2000s.

In 2012, a federal judge ordered Thompson to appear in court, but he ignored the order. So, in August 2012, an arrest warrant was issued. After evading arrest for three years, the feds tracked Thompson and his girlfriend down at a $200-a-night hotel in Florida where they had been staying.

For much of the time they had evaded arrest, Thompson, alongside his other half, lived in a mansion that they paid for with damp, mouldy cash that had likely been buried in the ground. When police discovered the mansion the couple had stayed in, they found cellphones, money straps stamped '$10,000', and a book about how to evade police.

After capture, Thompson pleaded guilty to contempt of court for failing to appear. Part of the deal required Thompson to admit the location of the extremely valuable gold coins found in the shipwreck.

via GIPHY

At first Thompson said the gold was in a trust in Belize and that he'd reveal the exact location. But he never did and the story is thought to be false.

Thompson now claims he can't remember where the treasure is. He says that he's already explained everything he knows and that he can't provide more details because he has a neurological disorder.

However, psychiatric evaluations and court hearings have found that Thompson doesn't have any condition that would prevent him from remembering the whereabouts of the treasure.

Thompson has been held in contempt of court for violating his plea deal since mid-December 2015 because he has refused to reveal the treasure's location.

Featured image credit: Police Archives & PA

James Dawson

James Dawson is a Journalist at LADbible. He has contributed articles to LADbible’s ‘Knowing Me, Knowing EU’ series on the EU referendum, the 'Electoral Dysfunction' series on the 2017 general election, the ‘U OK M8?’ series tackling mental health amongst young men, and for its ‘Climate Change’ initiative in partnership with National Geographic.

@thejaytoday