Builders unearth €9m gold loot sealed in walls of Belgian property

Fonte da imagem, Lokale Politie DendermondeLegenda da imagem, A polícia local compartilhou imagens do tesouro, descoberto no início da semana.

Builders renovating a house in Belgium have discovered a stash of gold reportedly worth some €9m (£7. 6m) sealed into the walls of its cellar.

The construction workers stumbled across the hidden trove of gold bars and coins while drilling to lay new sewage pipes in the property in east Flanders earlier this week, local media report.

The discovery has sparked interest in who might get to keep the loot - with both the builders and the local charity that owns the site having a chance of claiming it.

Uma investigação foi iniciada e a polícia local advertiu qualquer um que esperasse procurar por mais tesouros que o local havia sido "virado de cabeça para baixo" e o ouro transferido para um local seguro.

The builders unearthed the hoard while working on the building's foundations - including an 18-year-old working a summer job.

Our first reaction was actually disbelief, amazement," the student, named Kobe, told Belgian public broadcaster VRT.

At first I thought they were €1 coins. But then we also saw a gold nugget lying there. That's when we realised it was something bigger.

Fonte da imagem, Lokale Politie DendermondeLegenda da imagem, Os oficiais transferiram o butim para um local seguro.

Soon after, they alerted police to the discovery and explained that them keeping it for themselves was not an option.

There are so many coins and bars - it would be almost impossible," the site manager Mario told VRT.

Kobe agreed: "€9m – you simply can't keep that hidden.

A propriedade atualmente pertence à CAW Oost-Vlaanderen, que fornece apoio social em Dendermonde, uma comunidade flamenga de cerca de 47. 000 pessoas.

Its director, Geert Hillaert, said his first reaction was "surprise and amazement", adding that he hoped the loot might eventually be used to support the charity's work and meet the "enormous need we experience daily.

Local police urged the public not visit the active construction site looking for treasure.

The force - which has updated its Facebook profile picture to an image of a gold coin - said it hoped the discovery would end up in "the right place" and change people's lives.

O proprietário legítimo tem cinco anos para reivindicar o tesouro de acordo com a lei belga - embora o promotor local, que lançou uma investigação, tenha dito que ainda não se sabia quem poderia ser.

If no one comes forward, civil law states that hidden treasure on someone else's property be divided between the finder and the property's owner.

This only applies, though, if the loot is not found to be linked to criminal activity.

Tanto os construtores quanto a instituição de caridade agora enfrentam uma espera de até 1. 823 dias para que um proprietário se apresente. Se ninguém se manifestar para reivindicá-la com sucesso, o silêncio realmente será de ouro.