Three Men Battle the FBI Over Buried Civil War Gold. ‘Stuff Just Doesn’t Add Up.’

Treasure hunters are aiming to prove there were tons of loot in the ground in Pennsylvania—and that the government took it

By Kris Maher, Wall St. J., Aug. 5, 2023

DENTS RUN, Pa.—Dennis Parada points to a weedy spot where he believes the Federal Bureau of Investigation dug up nine tons of Civil War-era gold, worth more than $500 million, and made off with it in the middle of the night.

The patch of ground halfway up a mountain in western Pennsylvania lies at the heart of the treasure hunter’s quest to recover the trove and prove it was snatched from under his nose. The matter is now playing out in federal court.

At 70, he has been chasing the Dents Run gold for more than 40 years. “It’s definitely a major coverup,” says Parada, who has the mustache of a 19th-century gambler and smokes his cigarettes down to a stub. 

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The Paradas sued the FBI last year in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C. seeking enforcement of a Freedom of Information Act request. They now allege the FBI has failed to turn over certain records and doctored some photos to conceal a night dig. 

The FBI declined to comment on the lawsuit, but denies it kept digging at night. 

Read more here (subscription required).

The FOIA case docket is available here.

The FOIA Complaint is available here.