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| French man discovers gold coins and bars worth €3.5m in inherited house French man discovers gold coins and bars worth €3.5m in inherited house | |
| (17 days later) | |
| A Frenchman who inherited a house from a dead relative has discovered a glittering treasure trove of gold coins and bars worth millions. | A Frenchman who inherited a house from a dead relative has discovered a glittering treasure trove of gold coins and bars worth millions. |
| Squirrelled away in hiding places throughout the house in Normandy, he came across thousands of gold coins and bars weighing 100kg (220lb) in total. | Squirrelled away in hiding places throughout the house in Normandy, he came across thousands of gold coins and bars weighing 100kg (220lb) in total. |
| “There were 5,000 gold pieces, two bars of 12 kilos and 37 ingots of 1 kilo,” Nicolas Fierfort, a local auctioneer, told AFP, confirming a report in the local La Depeche newspaper. | “There were 5,000 gold pieces, two bars of 12 kilos and 37 ingots of 1 kilo,” Nicolas Fierfort, a local auctioneer, told AFP, confirming a report in the local La Depeche newspaper. |
| Fierfort, who had visited the house to value furniture offered for sale by the new owner, said the loot, which was worth €3.5m ($3.7m), was “extremely well hidden”. | Fierfort, who had visited the house to value furniture offered for sale by the new owner, said the loot, which was worth €3.5m ($3.7m), was “extremely well hidden”. |
| “It was under the furniture, under piles of linen, in the bathroom ... everywhere,” he said, admitting that he himself had overlooked the gold on his visit. | “It was under the furniture, under piles of linen, in the bathroom ... everywhere,” he said, admitting that he himself had overlooked the gold on his visit. |
| It was only when the new owner – whose identity and relationship with the previous owner were withheld – began moving the furniture that he stumbled on the stash. | It was only when the new owner – whose identity and relationship with the previous owner were withheld – began moving the furniture that he stumbled on the stash. |
| First he found a tin box of coins screwed to the underside of a piece of furniture. From there the trail led to a box for a bottle of whisky and other hiding places until he hit the jackpot: a pile of gold bars each weighing 12 kilos. | First he found a tin box of coins screwed to the underside of a piece of furniture. From there the trail led to a box for a bottle of whisky and other hiding places until he hit the jackpot: a pile of gold bars each weighing 12 kilos. |
| “At that point he called his solicitor to make an inventory,” Fierfort said. | “At that point he called his solicitor to make an inventory,” Fierfort said. |
| The gold, it turned out, was bought in the 1950s and 1960s. | The gold, it turned out, was bought in the 1950s and 1960s. |
| All the certificates of authenticity were later found in the deceased’s estate. | All the certificates of authenticity were later found in the deceased’s estate. |
| The gold has already been sold to various buyers in France and other countries. | The gold has already been sold to various buyers in France and other countries. |
| But the real winner could be the taxman, La Depeche said. | But the real winner could be the taxman, La Depeche said. |
| Apart from being liable for a 45-percent inheritance tax, the finder will also have to pay three years in back taxes on it if the deceased failed to declare his treasures. | Apart from being liable for a 45-percent inheritance tax, the finder will also have to pay three years in back taxes on it if the deceased failed to declare his treasures. |