By JERUSALEM POST STAFFPublished: MAY 31, 2007 13:53Advertisement
The Spanish government said Thursday it has filed a lawsuit in a US federal court against an American treasure-hunting firm over a shipwreck the company has found laden with a colonial-era treasure.
If the vessel was Spanish or was removed from Spanish waters, any treasure would belong to Spain, the government says.
"Odyssey Marine Exploration has been requested in a letter to provide information concerning the identity of the ship and the material recovered, and has not responded with the details we were asking for," Culture Ministry spokeswoman Susana Tello said.
"Spain has decided to go to (the) courts to claim its right in case the discovery is Spanish," she said, adding that the lawsuit was filed May 29 at the Tampa Courts in Florida.
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