The two men who have publicly identified themselves as finders of the Nazi gold train in Poland would get only 10 percent of the value of the stash. Polish law states that any find in the ground is state property.
However, the law provides for a 10 percent reward for the finders, who are Andres Richter and Piotr Koper. The two men appeared on TVP.INFO, a Polish TV station, on Friday, reports Associated Press.
Richter and Koper said that they had informed state authorities of their find and gave its precise location with Walbryzch authorities and the police present, according to the statement read by Koper. The two said they have irrefutable proof of the train's existence based on information from witnesses and their research, using their equipment.
The gold train is near the 65th kilometer of railway tracks from Wroclaw to Walzbrzych.
With the public confirmation of the two after leaks of the gold train discovery in media, Tadeusz Slowikowski, the only person alive who was the source of information about the train, admitted that the two men visited him. Slowikowski refused in the past to identify the two treasure hunters.
Slowikowski searched for the missing train in 2001 but reached only what is likely the support wall of a tunnel. Military specialists in chemical weapons and explosive had inspected the site to determine the need for a further search of the area, said Polish Defense Minister Tomasz Siemoniak. Police are also patrolling the vicinity to prevent new treasure hunters from digging.
Meanwhile, The Telegraph reports that Russia wants a share of that gold train and Russian representatives would likely be involved in determining the loot's value. Lawyer Michael Joffe explains, "If the property has been taken from territory, including USSR, then the cargo, in accordance with international law, must be passed to the Russian side," quotes National Post.
Polish Culture Ministeer Piotr Zuchowski stressed the train is owned by the state treasury, but the items would be returned to the owners. Jewish World Congress CEO said in a statement that items discovered in Poland are possibly stolen from Jews before they were killed by Hitler's men.
Zuchoswki told Pole to stop searching for the train because of the huge possibility that it is booby-trapped.