Four divers accused of looting Baltic wreck

In Finland, the public prosecutor’s office there has decided to bring charges against four men. The charges relate to theft from a protected wreck. The whole situation took place in 2011, but only now will it be examined by the court.

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According to information provided by the prosecutor’s office of the Itä-Uusimaa region, the accused four Finns have not been arrested. At the same time, the announcements regarding the looted items are very laconic and so far the full list has not been disclosed.

It all started with a possible criminal report filed by the National Board of Antiquities. Not much is also known about the wreck itself. Maija Matikka – a representative of the said NBA, described the vessel as a wreck sunk at a depth of about 40m near the town of Porvoo. The remains of the wreck were discovered by the Finnish Maritime Administration in 2004.

“It is a wooden wreck 26m long and about 7m wide,” reports Matikka

The three-masted ship was most likely carrying a cargo of cannabis when it was hit by a severe storm, as a result of which it went to the bottom. The find lay on the bottom for about three centuries, untouched from the day the ship sank.

According to experts, the wreck may date from the 17th or 18th century and is a typical vessel of the time.

According to Finnish law, the wrecks of all sunken vessels are the property of the state if the owner remains unknown and provided that the time on the bottom has exceeded one hundred years.

Source: yle.fi