Judge Weighs Ownership Of Giant Emerald

LOS ANGELES (AP) — One of several people claiming ownership of an 840-pound emerald told a judge Friday that he is the legal owner of the gigantic gem after paying just $60,000 for it soon after it was unearthed in Brazil.

KNX 1070's Bill Cooper Reports

Anthony Thomas said he bought the so-called Bahia Emerald in 2001. Its appraised value is now $372 million, and numerous parties are claiming ownership.

Lawyers say the well-traveled stone has made stops during the past nine years in California, Las Vegas and New Orleans, where it was kept in a bank vault that was flooded during Hurricane Katrina, leaving the gem underwater for several months.

During opening statements at the trial to test the claim of Thomas, attorney Jeffrey Baruh said his client paid for the hulking rock in a straightforward transaction but was later tricked into believing the emerald had been stolen so it could be sold to someone else for more money.

"Mr. Thomas is the only person who has ever paid a cent for the Bahia Emerald," Baruh said.

Competing claimants say they are the rightful owner, and their lawyers portrayed Thomas as an opportunist.

Steven Haney, a lawyer for claimant Mark Downie, said Thomas had never taken actual possession of the gem and failed to contact Brazilian authorities after he thought it had been stolen.

"This is a case where either everybody else in the case is lying or Mr. Thomas is not telling the truth," Haney said. "His story is inherently unbelievable."

Thomas later countered from the witness box: "I am the owner of the Bahia Emerald ... I purchased it."

Superior Court Judge John A. Kronstadt will weigh that claim and decide the case after hearing from other claimants at a later date.

The emerald has left a murky trail since it was pulled from a mine in Brazil's Bahia state.

It came into the U.S. in early 2005 and was kept in San Jose before being taken to New Orleans, according to attorney Andrew Spielberger, who represents another group of claimants.

It went back to San Jose and made a brief trip east of Los Angeles before being taken to Las Vegas for inspection by a potential buyer.

There, Los Angeles County deputies and other agents seized it. It remains s under lock and key with the Sheriff's Department.

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