Nazi gold train claimed to be found in Poland
A long-lost Nazi train from World War II has claimed to have been found with a possible hoard of some 300 tons of gold, precious stones and weapons.
Two people in Poland have written to a district council in the southwest of the country and have claimed that they know the location of the stash. The two men are holding off on revealing the location of the train until being given assurances that they can have 10 percent of the treasure's value.
Walbrzych District Council confirmed to CNBC that it had been contacted by a law firm working on behalf of the two people. Marika Tokarska, an official at the authority, said that the council was taking the proposal "very seriously."
"We know that is a military train with guns on it. We can suppose that inside could be also other weapons or even dangerous materials. Even methane gas (could be) inside of the tunnels," she told CNBC via email.
"We need to take care about people's safety in this area. That way we couldn't ignore this information."
The army, the police and the fire brigade are now dealing with the situation, despite some skepticism from some members of the local authority.
A number of trains are believed to have been used by the Nazis in the 1940s to transport goods stolen from people in eastern Europe back to Berlin. While some might have made it to the German capital, others are believed to have been left behind as the Soviet troops advanced in 1945.
This particular mystery train is believed to be near Ksiaz castle, 77 kilometers southeast of the Polish town of Wroclaw, according to local media.
One of the men is from Poland and the other from Germany, according to Tokarska, who added that they would like to remain anonymous. The men described the train as being 150 meters in length and Tokarska told CNBC that she is certain the both would have been warned of the severity of the situation.
"I am sure that the law office, before deciding to take this case, made sure that is not a joke and informed them about the consequences if it is not true," she said.