Tommy Thompson, a research scientist, found a sunken 19th-century vessel off the coast of South Carolina in 1988, with approximately $4 million in gold coins aboard. Thompson had been paid $12.7 million by 161 investors to discover the ship, but after he did, the investors received no money. Thompson is now in his sixth year in prison for refusing to reveal where the gold has gone.
Thompson attempted, but failed, to flee to Florida in 2012 to escape being sued by the investors, according to CBS News. When he was ultimately discovered hiding out in Boca Raton with a female companion in 2015, he was sentenced to two years in prison and fined $250,000.
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Thompson’s sentence is still being served because he refuses to reveal the whereabouts of the 500 gold coins that the investors allege are theirs.
Thompson, on the other hand, appears to believe that loose mouths sink ships.
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