Gold coins worth over $1M stolen off 1715 shipwreck recovered, Florida officials say – Tampa Bay Times
Three dozen stolen gold coins linked to a fleet of 18th-century treasure ships have been recovered after a lengthy investigation by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and the FBI, state officials say.
Collectively, the 37 coins are valued at more than $1 million, experts say, including a one-of-a-kind gold piece from 1709 that was mistakenly hammered with a silver coin stamp.
That coin, sometimes referred to as a “Holy Grail coin,” was reclaimed this year after being illegally sold at auction for about $50,000, officials told McClatchy News.
“The recovery marks a major milestone in a long-standing investigation into the theft and illegal trafficking of these priceless historical artifacts,” wildlife commission officials said in in a Tuesday news release.
“In 2015, members of the Schmitt family — working as contracted salvage operators for 1715 Fleet-Queens Jewels, LLC, — uncovered a treasure trove of 101 gold coins from the wrecks off Florida’s Treasure Coast. While 51 of these coins were reported correctly and adjudicated, 50 coins were not.”
All the stolen coins were minted in Lima, Peru, between 1697 and 1712, and included multiple denominations, the largest of which weighed an ounce, officials told McClatchy News.
A state and federal probe into the theft of the coins was launched in June, after evidence of the theft was uncovered by 1715 Fleet-Queens Jewels LLC, officials said.
That probe “linked Eric Schmitt, a member of the Schmitt family, to the illegal sale of multiple stolen gold coins between 2023 and 2024,” state officials said.
Multiple search warrants were issued and the missing coins were recovered “from private residences, safe deposit boxes and auctions,” the wildlife commission reports.
“Five stolen coins were reclaimed from a Florida-based auctioneer, who unknowingly purchased them from Eric Schmitt,” officials said.
“Advanced digital forensics identified metadata and geolocation data linking Eric Schmitt to a photograph of the stolen coins taken at the Schmitt family condominium in Fort Pierce. It was also discovered that Eric Schmitt took three of the stolen gold coins and placed them on the ocean floor in 2016 to be found by the new investors.”
The recovered coins were authenticated with the help of historical preservation experts.
Thirteen coins remain unaccounted for and are believed to have been illegally sold, the wildlife commission said.
“This case underscores the importance of safeguarding Florida’s rich cultural heritage and holding accountable those who seek to profit from its exploitation,” investigator Camille Soverel said in the release.
The ship carrying the coins sank on July 31, 1715, and was part of a fleet of 11 Spanish treasure ships sunk by the same hurricane off Florida, historians say. They were attempting to return to Spain at the time, the National Park Service reports.
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“Although the Spanish managed to recover some treasure, much more remained on the ocean floor. The sunken ships lay forgotten for more than 200 years until modern treasure hunters discovered several of them,” National Park Service historians say.
Artifacts found on the wrecks are “protected by state and federal law,” officials said.
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