Spain Seizes U.S. Treasure Hunter Ship

(CBS/AP)  Spanish Civil Guards on Thursday heightened a battle over a $500 million treasure of gold and silver coins from a shipwreck when they seized a vessel belonging to a Tampa, Fla.,-based company.

The Ocean Alert was seized three miles off the southeastern coast of Spain and taken to the nearby port of Algeciras to be searched, the Civil Guard said.

The Civil Guard acted on an order of a Spanish judge who in June instructed police to seize two vessels of Odyssey Marine Exploration if they left the British colony of Gibraltar - on Spain's southern tip - and entered Spanish waters.

However, Odyssey sent a statement to Spanish press arguing their ship was boarded in international waters - under threat of force - and told to head for Algeciras, despite an agreement with Spanish authorities that the vessel would only be searched at sea.

"On this point, Odyssey is assuming that the action by the Civil Guards was the result of a misunderstanding between the Spanish authorities," Spain's Telecinco network quoted the statement as saying.

Odyssey said the Civil Guard "threatened the captain with the use of force if he did not turn around and head for the port of Algeciras," according to Telecinco, one of Spain's leading television networks.

Odyssey, a treasure hunting company, said it had found the Colonial-era shipwreck on May 18, and the coins have been flown to the United States from Gibraltar.

Spain filed claims last month in a U.S. federal court over Odyssey's find, arguing that if the shipwrecked vessel was Spanish or was removed from its waters, the treasure belongs to Spain.

Odyssey insists the shipwreck was outside any country's territorial waters, but has not given its exact location or the ship's name.

According to a release from the company, Odyssey has provided a 109-page affidavit to authorities in the Spanish Federal government, the Junta de Andalucia, the United Kingdom, Gibraltar and the United States detailing Odyssey's activities concerning the discovery.

"We always attempt to work with appropriate governments on shipwreck projects in which they may have an interest and look forward to addressing any issues of claims or legal jurisdiction related to the (shipwreck site) in the proper venue, which is U.S. Federal Court," Odyssey co-founder Greg Stemm said in a news release.

In Britain, the find generated press reports that Odyssey had salvaged the wreck of the long-sought British vessel Merchant Royal, which sank in bad weather off England in 1641. Odyssey has not confirmed or denied these reports.

[fizzal-2009]

Call the sheriff there,s someting foreign in the jars on the shelfs at the suppermarket it might be Spanish olives that need too bee seized.

[grazinggoat]

Iraq oil belongs to Iraqis? Or is it Iraq is just too crippled to claim anyhting so we continue to 'salvage' it?

[dentay]

Maritime salvage rules have been well established for many decades (centuries?). The Spanish claim that %u201Cif the vessel was Spanish%u201D they are entitled to the treasure is absurd. Spain%u2019s seizure of the %u201COdyssey%u201D is way out of line, not to mention contrary to international law. It appears that the Ocean Alert Company has been forthcoming in their activities and if Spain believes a law was violated, well, that%u2019s the reason we have international courts, isn%u2019t it? The real %u201Cbee in the bonnet%u201D of recently socialistic Spain is the success of a company whose sole purpose is to %u201Chunt for treasure%u201D. What could be more decadently capitalistic than that?

[toolmangler-2009]

I believe I will file a law suit against Spain in the name of the American Indian to recover the loot stolen from us by the Spanish, HHHmmmmmm has an air of justice to it. (BIG GRIN)

[jowand]

Sounds like Spains nasty old colonial underwear is showing on this one. All of the gold, silver and gems were stolen from the people of South and Central America, usually by acts of extreme violence. Who is Spain to demand anything which is not theirs? They are the cause of almost all of the political problems in South and Central America, which the US in conveniently blamed for, in the here and now.
John W

[tbweb]

This is great for U.S. Spanish relations and a NATO partner at that! Lets see where this is going and ends up. Hopefully things won't get that bad and we have to withhold F18 parts or anything like that.

[killtheliars]

the people that found the wreck should have wired it to explode by remote. Then they could say it is ours and if we cannot have it nobody will have it.

[toolmangler-2009]

This is a setup for something. Not sure who originated the plot but it is sitting there saying "I am a ploy"!

[dan9111]

It is amazing in the days of GPS, where every US cell phone and rental car is tracked to the centimeter, that we can't determine where a huge friggen boat was located! Get the U.S. military satellite photo of the ship being boarded, along with a notice of inbound warheads on the the way. No, on the other hand, just send Michael Moore and Sean Hannity. They will clear this up.