James Kane and Barbie Agostini, Queens, NYC couple find $100K magnet fishing in Queens lake at Corona Park. Discovered loot believed to be stolen loot. But will they be able to cash in?
A poor man’s treasure hunting… but who does the money belong to? A Queens couple pulled a safe with over $100,000 in cash inside from the bottom of a lake in Corona Park while ‘magnet fishing,’ according to a report.
The two anglers, James Kane and Barbie Agostini, tossed a line with a strong magnet on the end into the water on Friday afternoon only to suddenly feel something bulky on the end. Upon pulling up the hoist, they discovered an old safe.
But what could be inside?
Stacked bills were ‘soaking wet, pretty much destroyed,’
The pair were able to pry the safe open and find over $100K in loot — which was ruined by the water — wrapped in plastic.
‘It was two stacks of freaking hundreds. Big stacks,’ Kane told NY1.
Adding, ‘We have found plenty of safes before, this is just what a magnet fisher does.’
Kane said as veteran magnet fishermen he and Agostini had found plenty of safes before — most of which are empty, save some plastic bags used to hold cash. He expected this one to be the same.
He showed me and once I saw the actual dollars and the security ribbons I lost it,’ a shocked Agostini told the outlet.
Unfortunately for the pair, the bills were ‘soaking wet, pretty much destroyed,’ Kane said. But that might not necessarily discount the couple still cashing in the loot (more below).
But will they be able to cash in?
The pair called the NYPD to avoid any legal trouble. A number of cops arrived just to check out the bizarre call that had come over the radio.
‘Obviously, it was a safe that was stolen but there was no crime with us,’ Agostini said. ‘There was no IDs, no way to find the original person in the safe so they were like “well, congratulations.”‘
With no way to ID the owner of the safe, which was likely stolen, Kane and Agostini were allowed to keep what they found.
‘I guess the finders keepers rule worked for us,’ Kane said.
The couple first got into magnet fishing during the pandemic.
‘We were borded during covid lockdown and I’ve always had this itch to become a treasure hunter … so we discovered something called magnet fishing,’ Kane told NY1.
Kane called the hobby ‘the poor man’s treasure hunting.’
The cost of magnet fishing equipment varies. Kits start at about $15 on Amazon, but specialist kits can cost hundreds.
Among their finds, the couple stated once finding a WWII-era grenade they pulled out of Sheepshead Bay in Brooklyn and six or seven guns, some dating back to the 19th century, in Flushing Meadows.
It’s unclear if the pair will be able to cash in the bills, but there is a chance that the US Bureau of Engraving and Printing will redeem their money.
If more than 50 percent of the currency is identifiable, a lawful holder of the notes ‘may receive a redemption at full value,’ according to the BEP website.
