Tommy Thompson freed after decade in prison; about 500 Ship of Gold coins still missing
Mar 11th 2026
The treasure hunter who found the S.S. Central America was released from federal custody after a long legal saga over missing gold coins and investor claims that millions were withheld.
- Thompson was released from federal prison last Wednesday, according to Bureau of Prisons records reviewed by the Associated Press.
- He located the S.S. Central America in 1988, a ship that sank in 1857 carrying California Gold Rush treasure.
- About 500 gold coins from the wreck remain unaccounted for after sales of recovered treasure.
- Investors who backed Thompson sued in 2005, saying they had not received proceeds from the roughly $50 million sale of recovered gold.
- Thompson became a fugitive after missing a 2012 court hearing, was arrested in 2015, and jailed for contempt for refusing to disclose the coins' whereabouts.
- Thompson says the missing coins were turned over to a trust in Belize and that he does not know their current location, while a judge ended his civil contempt sentence last February and ordered a two year term for skipping the 2012 hearing.