Yamashita's gold

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Yamashita's gold is the name given to loot worth billions of dollars stolen from East and Southeast Asia by Japanese forces during World War II and hidden in the Philippines,

The treasure trove takes its name from General Yamashita Tomoyuki, who assumed command of Japanese forces in the Philippines in 1944. The "gold" includes many different kinds of valuables looted from banks, depositories, mosques, temples, churches, shops, museums and private homes. It was intended that loot from South East Asia would finance Japan's war effort. Most of the loot was first shipped to the port of Singapore, where it was then relayed to the Philippines. From the Philippines, it was intended that the treasure would be shipped to the Japanese home islands.

As the Pacific War progressed, Allied submarines and aircraft took a heavy toll on Japan's shipping. Some ships carrying loot back to Japan were sunk. The Japanese military began to hide the loot in caves and underground complexes throughout the Philippines, hoping to recover it after the war was over. Many of those who knew the locations of the loot were either executed or incarcerated for war crimes, including Yamashita. Thus, the whereabouts of the treasure locations were lost. Many years later, Filipino dictator Ferdinand Marcos located some of the treasure and obtained part of his personal fortune from it. His recoveries are known as the "Marcos gold". In 1995, Philippine government agents’ recovered two tons of platinum with a value of US$480 million, part of the hoard. Aside from these finds, others finds are not sufficiently documented.

Roger Roxas, a treasure hunter from Baguio City found numerous gold bars along with a Golden Buddha with a detachable head. The inside of the Buddha's body was filled with gems and other artifacts of value. Roxas was a locksmith and for three years searched for a hidden underground trove, which he eventually found. Unfortunately news of the find reached President Marcos who was aware of the existence of Yamashita's treasure and his military staff forcibly took the recovered treasure, away from Roxas.

When the gold was buried, it was done in anticipation that the Americans would defeat the Japanese and the underground vaults, tunnels, and entrances were booby trapped with gas, explosives, and water. The water traps were created by digging 300 - 350 feet underground in the dry months, at which time the water table was at its lowest.

Robert Szatmary of Australia, the leading authority on Yamashita Treasure Gold and recovery, eliminates doubts about the reality of the Yamashita treasure because he directs the buy-back programs for the recovered Yamashita Treasure Gold.

The case of ROGER ROXAS and THE GOLDEN BUDDHA CORPORATION, v. FERDINAND E. MARCOS and IMELDA MARCOS, heard in Hawaii is a claim for payment of Yamashita Treasure Gold stolen by Ferdinand Marcos from Roxas. Prolonged legal actions of the highest order have resulted in various Hawaiian court rulings proving that the Yamashita Treasure Gold recovered by Roxas entitled him to a major share of the proceeds. The litigation exposed the vulnerability of treasure hunters who find Yamashita’s Gold. The treasure hunter of past was almost powerless in opposing the Philippine Government should it order the surrender of discovered Yamashita Gold and treasure, to it.

Today, people relate stories about the Japanese Imperial Army systematically killing those (including relations and friends) who tunneled underground to bury the treasure to keep its locations a secret.

The Philippine Government has laws are in place clarifying the profit sharing arrangements relating to recovered Yamashita Treasure Gold. The laws also set out the treasure hunter's obligations, the method of sharing the proceeds showing that the "urban legend" proponents are ill informed.

Profit Sharing Laws of the Republic of the Philippines

Department of Environment and Natural Resources - ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER No. 2004 – 33, Amendments to Department of Environment and Natural Resources Administrative Order No. 2002-04, Otherwise Known as the “Rules and Regulations Governing the Issuance of Permits for Treasure Hunting, Shipwreck/Sunken Vessel Recovery and Disposition of Recovered Treasures/Valuable Cargoes, Including Hoarded Hidden Treasures”. Section 14 (Sharing) offers the following benefits for treasure recovery :

After an audited report of expenses has been evaluated and approved by the Oversight Committee, the sharing of the net proceeds shall be as follows:

a).For Treasure Hunting within Public Lands – Seventy-five percent (75%) to the Government and twenty-five (25%) to the Permit Holder;

b).For Treasure Hunting in Private Lands – Thirty Percent (30%) to the Government and Seventy Percent (70%) to be shared by the Permit Holder and the landowner; and

c).For Shipwreck/Sunken Vessel Recovery – Fifty percent (50%) to the Government and Fifty percent (50%) to the Permit Holder.”

Conclusion: It follows that an actual legal case exists in which payments were ordered, for the benefit of treasure hunters and that the payment orders were based on facts before the court, proving the existence and recovery of stolen treasure gold and;

The Philippine Government has enacted laws protecting its interest in recovered Yamashita treasure gold and laws are not created to support fictional possibilities, but genuine circumstances.

The Roxas case proves that Marcos did recover a portion of the Yamashita Gold, however there were 172 different sites throughout the Philippines where the Japanese Army hid their stolen treasures. Many of these locations were existing wartime bunkers and therefore, little engineering effort was required to create secret underground hiding places. Other locations were constructed by Japanese soldiers and Philippines nationals, many of whom were entombed to ensure secrecy.