SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — A French treasure hunter has sued the estate of a New Mexico antiquities dealer who sparked a yearslong search by hiding a chest filled with gold, coins and other valuables.
Bruno Raphoz is seeking $10 million in a U.S. complaint filed last week.
He claims the late Forrest Fenn deprived him of the riches by moving the treasure chest after he solved a riddle that would lead him to the loot.
The Santa Fe New Mexican reports that it comes a year after another man found the treasure in Wyoming in July 2020.
Fenn filled a bronze chest with gold, jewels and other valuables worth an estimated $2 million and hid it a decade ago somewhere in the Rocky Mountain wilderness. The search gained the interest of many, including some who died in the quest to find it.
Raphoz claims Fenn's announcement last year that the treasure was found was suspicious and suspects Fenn kept the loot.
Fenn died at the age of 90 in September.