This is documented by a number of warm letters. Following the West German government´s rebuff of Klein´s offer to reclaim the treasure, this disillusioned officer supposedly revealed his secret to Gaensel. Jaroslav Klima, Deputy Minister of Interior and one of the most powerful men in communist Czechoslovakia during the 1960´s, was in charge of Klein´s case. In a recent interview he said that he found Gaensel´s story quite plausible.

While Gaensel disappeared for a period of time in South America, Emil Klein died in 1972.

Gaensel briefly returned to Prague during DubcekÕs Prague Spring in 1968. He negotiated and got the Czech governmentÕs approval to start the Stechovice expedition in September. Shortly before the Soviet tanks rolled to Prague in August, Gaensel left his homeland for good.

In 1991, more than thirty years after obtaining his exclusive information from Klein, Geansel (confident and cocky) appeared in Stechovice ready to claim the buried treasures. He brought with him a team consisting of psychotronics, professional treasure hunters, geologists, explosive experts and his Dutch investors.

During his first three-year sojourn through Stechovice, he had established a base at the local hotel "Mandate" and started a life of luxury not common in this bucolic village. At a considerable cost, he rented 39 acres of land in six different locations to conduct his search. Some of the locations were said to be used as decoys.

Gaensel complained bitterly that local residents were exploiting his status as a wealthy American. He blamed a local municipality for delaying his efforts by holding-up the approval of construction permits to start the excavation. It was assumed that the city fathers were trying to find a way of capitalising on any potential discovery.

Since1994, when he finally received official blessing for his project, Gaensel insisted several times that the find was imminent.