{"id":1505196,"date":"2024-11-30T00:10:00","date_gmt":"2024-11-30T05:10:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/?p=1505196"},"modified":"2024-11-30T00:10:00","modified_gmt":"2024-11-30T05:10:00","slug":"florida-authorities-recover-37-gold-coins-stolen-from-1715-fleet-shipwrecks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/florida-authorities-recover-37-gold-coins-stolen-from-1715-fleet-shipwrecks\/1505196\/","title":{"rendered":"Florida Authorities Recover 37 Gold Coins Stolen From 1715 Fleet Shipwrecks"},"content":{"rendered":"

Florida Authorities Recover 37 Gold Coins Stolen From 1715 Fleet Shipwrecks<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Authored by Aldgra Fredly via The Epoch Times,<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Florida authorities have recovered 37 gold coins worth more than $1 million that were stolen from the 1715 Fleet shipwrecks,<\/strong> the state\u2019s Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) said on Nov. 26.<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

The FWC said the gold coin recovery marked \u201ca major milestone\u201d in a years-long investigation into the theft<\/strong> and illegal trafficking of historical artifacts.<\/p>\n

The gold coins were initially found by contracted salvage operators for the 1715 Fleet\u2014comprising Spanish ships that sank in a hurricane off Florida\u2019s coast in 1715\u2014off Florida\u2019s Treasure Coast in 2015.<\/p>\n

There were 101 gold coins found from the wreckages, but only 51 of them were reported and adjudicated, while the remaining gold coins were not disclosed and were later stolen<\/strong>, the FWC said in a statement.<\/a><\/p>\n

FWC investigators launched a probe with the FBI after new evidence came to light in June this year, leading to the arrest of Eric Schmitt, whose family had been contracted to salvage the centuries-old fleet.<\/p>\n

Schmitt was connected to the illegal sale of stolen gold coins between 2023 and 2024, the FWC stated.<\/p>\n

During the probe, investigators carried out multiple search warrants and recovered coins from private residences, safe deposit boxes, and auctions. Five coins were retrieved from an auctioneer living in Florida, who had purchased them from Schmitt, the FWC stated.<\/p>\n

Investigators also used advanced digital forensics to identify metadata and geolocation data, which linked Schmitt to a photo of the stolen coins taken at the Schmitt family condominium in Fort Pierce.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The FWC said that Schmitt also took three of the stolen gold coins and placed them on the ocean floor in 2016, which were subsequently found by new investors of the 1715 Fleet.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis case underscores the importance of safeguarding Florida\u2019s rich cultural heritage and holding accountable those who seek to profit from its exploitation,\u201d<\/strong><\/em> FWC investigator Camille Soverel said in a statement.<\/p>\n

Authorities said the recovered artifacts will be returned to their rightful custodians, though the probe is still ongoing to locate 13 remaining stolen gold coins and hold those involved in the illegal sale accountable.<\/p>\n

The custodian and salvaging company of the 1715 Fleet, Queen Jewels LLC, said it was \u201cshocked and disappointed\u201d by the theft and has been working with law enforcement and the state in the case.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe take our responsibilities as custodian very seriously and will always seek to enforce the laws governing these wrecks,\u201d the company said in a statement<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cThe recovered coins are now going through the proper process for legal adjudication.\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The FWC said it partnered with the 19th and Ninth Judicial Circuits to bring charges against Schmitt for dealing in stolen property.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Tyler Durden<\/a><\/span>
\nFri, 11\/29\/2024 – 19:10<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200bhttps:\/\/www.zerohedge.com\/precious-metals\/florida-authorities-recover-37-gold-coins-stolen-1715-fleet-shipwrecks<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Florida Authorities Recover 37 Gold Coins Stolen From 1715 Fleet Shipwrecks Authored by Aldgra Fredly via The Epoch Times, Florida authorities have recovered 37 gold…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":1505197,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1505196","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","wpcat-1-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1505196","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1505196"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1505196\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1505197"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1505196"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1505196"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1505196"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}