A decade ago, Santa Fe author and antiques dealer Forrest Fenn, 89, hid a treasure chest containing $1 million in gold, diamonds, rubies, and emeralds somewhere in the Rocky Mountains. A poem in Fenn's memoir, titled "The Thrill of the Chase," contained clues to the treasure's location and he hoped hunting for it would inspire families to enjoy nature and the adventure. (For more, watch the 2016 video above.) Now, Fenn reports that someone from "back East" found the treasure but does not want to be named. It's a wonderful tale except for the deaths, lawsuits, and arrests. From the Santa Fe New Mexican:
An estimated 350,000 people have hunted for Fenn’s treasure. Some quit their jobs to do so. But it’s had deadly consequences. At least five people have died while searching for the chest.
Barbara Andersen, a Chicago real estate attorney, said she is filing an injunction in federal District Court alleging she solved the puzzle but was hacked by someone she doesn’t know.
“He stole my solve,” she said in an interview. “He followed and cheated me to get the chest."[…]
And still others believe the treasure never existed — or had already been given away.
“I think his announcement is at least a few years, and a few lives, too late. But he has to live with that. I believe this was over much earlier than today,” said treasure hunter Seth Wallack.
"Forrest Fenn confirms his treasure has been found" (Santa Fe New Mexican)
