Treasure hunter claims FBI is covering up discovery of Civil War-era gold worth millions: 'Double-crossed'
The treasure hunter says he feels 'lied to'
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The FBI is covering up a trove of Civil War-era gold the agency dug up in Pennsylvania, one treasure hunter claimed – and he's determined to expose the alleged truth.
"We feel we were double-crossed and lied to," said Dennis Parada, co-owner of Finders Keepers.
The FBI had searched a remote area in Dents Run in 2018 for a cache of gold worth hundreds of millions of dollars, but the agency said it did not find anything. The area is allegedly where an 1863 shipment of Union gold disappeared on its way to the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Parada sued the Justice Department last year to force the FBI to release records on the search of the excavation site, and a judge ruled in favor of the agency.
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Treasure hunter Dennis Parada, owner of Finders Keepers, talks about the FBI's 2018 dig for Civil War-era gold in an interview at his office in Clearfield, Pennsylvania, Jan. 6, 2023. (AP Photo/Michael Rubinkam)
After reviewing the newly released documents, Parada said the FBI is distorting key evidence and improperly withholding records in an apparent effort to conceal the recovery of the historic gold cache.
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"The truth will come out," said Parada, who's looking to earn a finder’s fee from the potential discovery.
A federal judge overseeing the case will decide if the FBI must release its operational plan for the gold dig and other records it wants to keep secret. The judge could also order the FBI to keep looking for additional materials to turn over to the treasure hunter.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Fox News Digital reached out to the FBI Sunday morning about Parada’s claims of a coverup, but did not immediately receive a response. The FBI declined comment to The Associated Press.
An FBI photo portraying the site of its 2018 dig for Civil War-era gold is seen on Dennis Parada's laptop in Clearfield, Pennsylvania, Jan. 6, 2023. (AP Photo/Michael Rubinkam)
The FBI confirmed last year that the agency had searched the area for gold, but did not recover anything, adding that it "continues to unequivocally reject any claims or speculation to the contrary."
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Parada and his consultant, Warren Getler, suspect the FBI conducted a late-night dig of the area and found the gold in 2018.
Dennis Parada sued the Justice Department to force the FBI to release records on the search of the excavation site, and a judge ruled in favor of the agency. (AP Photo/Michael Rubinkam)
"We have compelling evidence a night dig took place, and that the FBI went to some large effort to cover up that night dig," said Getler, co-author of "Rebel Gold," a book exploring the possibility of buried Civil War-era caches of gold and silver.
Parada and his son, Kem Parada, had searched for the gold for years, eventually finding a remote woodland area that contained a large quantity of metal. The duo's work eventually led the FBI to obtain a warrant to search the area in March 2018, which was documented by a videographer.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Dennis Parada is pressing the FBI to release more documents related to the dig, where he suspects gold was found. (AP Photo/Michael Rubinkam)
Parada suspects that between the first and second days of the court-authorized excavation, the agency found the historic gold during a clandestine, overnight dig. Residents previously reported hearing a backhoe and jackhammer overnight – when the dig was supposed to have been paused – and seeing a convoy of FBI vehicles, including large armored trucks.
The FBI has denied it conducted an overnight dig.
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"I will stick at this until the end, until I know everything that happened to that gold," Parada said. "How much, where it went to, who has it now. I gotta know."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.