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One gem of a case in California
Source: Agencies |
November 11, 2010, Thursday
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A CALIFORNIA man is trying to prove he owns a 380-kilogram emerald dug up in the Brazilian jungle, but a group of businessmen say he's nothing more than a tourist who had his picture taken with it.
It's up to a Los Angeles judge to determine if Anthony Thomas really owns the US$400 million Bahia Emerald, which has spent the past 10 years on a mysterious journey across the United States.
Thomas, who has collected several other emeralds, testified on Tuesday that he bought the gem in 2001 for US$60,000. But he says he never received it. Instead, he claims, the Brazilian miners who sold it to him kept it and told him the shipper lost it so they could resell it to someone else for more money.
After that, the rock turned up in New Orleans, where it was housed in a bank vault that flooded during Hurricane Katrina. It was also reported stolen from a storage facility in the Los Angeles suburb of El Monte before authorities finally seized it in Las Vegas.
To bolster his case, Thomas' attorney introduced 25 photos of Thomas with his arm around the hulking stone.
But attorney Andrew Spielberger, representing a handful of businessmen who say they bought the gem for US$1.3 million, dismissed the photos as little more than tourist snapshots.
"Why would you take 25 photos of the 270-kilogram emerald if you were going to take it home with you anyway?" Spielberger asked.
The rock is referred to in court as the 270-kilogram emerald because that was its estimated weight before it was placed on a scale.
Thomas says the photos were taken at a celebration commemorating his ownership of the gem. He said he also received a bill of sale but lost it when his house burned down in 2006.
Superior Court Judge John A. Kronstadt is hearing the case without a jury. The trial will continue.
It's up to a Los Angeles judge to determine if Anthony Thomas really owns the US$400 million Bahia Emerald, which has spent the past 10 years on a mysterious journey across the United States.
Thomas, who has collected several other emeralds, testified on Tuesday that he bought the gem in 2001 for US$60,000. But he says he never received it. Instead, he claims, the Brazilian miners who sold it to him kept it and told him the shipper lost it so they could resell it to someone else for more money.
After that, the rock turned up in New Orleans, where it was housed in a bank vault that flooded during Hurricane Katrina. It was also reported stolen from a storage facility in the Los Angeles suburb of El Monte before authorities finally seized it in Las Vegas.
To bolster his case, Thomas' attorney introduced 25 photos of Thomas with his arm around the hulking stone.
But attorney Andrew Spielberger, representing a handful of businessmen who say they bought the gem for US$1.3 million, dismissed the photos as little more than tourist snapshots.
"Why would you take 25 photos of the 270-kilogram emerald if you were going to take it home with you anyway?" Spielberger asked.
The rock is referred to in court as the 270-kilogram emerald because that was its estimated weight before it was placed on a scale.
Thomas says the photos were taken at a celebration commemorating his ownership of the gem. He said he also received a bill of sale but lost it when his house burned down in 2006.
Superior Court Judge John A. Kronstadt is hearing the case without a jury. The trial will continue.
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