PORTLAND, Maine — A federal judge has ended a Maine treasure hunter's six-year effort to salvage what he claimed to be $3 billion in platinum from a World War II shipwreck off Cape Cod.
A judge ruled Wednesday that Sea Hunters LP is no longer able to salvage additional items from the S.S. Port Nicholson, which was sunk by a Nazi U-boat in 1942. The judge also denied an attempt by investors to win salvage rights and said evidence suggests there's nothing valuable to salvage.
The decision, first reported by the Portland Press Herald, brings to an end an effort that led to a criminal investigation and legal action by investors. Greg Brooks believed the Port Nicholson carried platinum bars from the Soviet Union that were payment to the U.S. for war supplies.