US treasure hunter gets to keep Panama loot

US FEDERAL agents in Fort Pierce  have ruled that American treasure hunte Daniel Porter, is the rightful owner of 100 pieces of a treasure trove from  the San Jose Spanish  galleon, in the Las Perlas archipelago

The  authorities  had seized 100 coins, each with a value of  between 500 and 600 dollars.

During the past six months, a portion of the treasure has been held by the US federal government in the vaults of the US Customs and Border Patrol in Fort Pierce, during a legal dispute between the Government of Panama and Daniel Porter, a local treasure hunter, who in 2012 first found the wreck of the Spanish galleon.

More than 400,000 pieces of silver and gold, still remain in the ocean. A contract governing the wreck was signed in 2003 by the Panamanian government.

A recent discovery of a similar wreck off the coast of Colombia has been designated a national treasure and the government plans to build a museum housing the ship   and its artifacts and is keeping the site of the wreck secret to prevent encroachment by treasure hunters.