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Sunday, September 07, 2003
DOJ may hire US lawyers to pursue case v. treasure hunter
By Benjamin B. Pulta
AMERICAN lawyers have offered their services to the Philippine government to sue deep-sea adventurer Phil Greco, the 55-year-old treasure hunter who wants to sell antiques valued at $50 million he took during 11 years of operations off the coasts of the Philippines.
Justice Secretary Simeon Datumanong this week tasked undersecretary Manuel A. J. Teehankee to complete his report on the possible actions which may be taken by the Philippine government against Greco before the US.
A DOJ source who declined to be named said the DOJ has been approached by a number of American lawyers who are offering their services to the Philippine government.
Greco, by his own admission, had undertaken deep-sea treasure diving operations in sixteen sites in the last 11 years, and recovered 23,500 pieces of porcelain, 4- to 5-foot-high jars, thousands of Ming dynasty plates with diameters of 10 to 25 inches, some weighing 100 pounds.
Citing legal issues, Guernsey's Auction House in New York indefinitely postponed a scheduled auction of thousands of Greco artifacts valued at more than $50 million, which include Dutch, Portuguese and English cannons, rare gold and silver coins, a 1784 Spanish bell, and black granite statues believed to have been buried in royal tombs dating back to the Ming Dynasty of 1368-1644.
Jose Jimeno, deputy consul general of the Philippine Consulate General in New York, was earlier quoted as saying that a government panel consisting of representatives from the Bureau of Customs, Department of Justice and the National Museum is investigating Greco's activities after the National Museum revealed the treasure hunter did not have any permit to explore or excavate.
(September 7, 2003 issue)
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