A couple "fishing" with a magnet at a lake in Corona Park made the ultimate catch this weekend, pulling up a metal safe with approximately $100,000 in it from the bottom of the water, according to a new report from NY1.
NY1 reported that "'Magnet Fishing' enthusiasts lower high-powered magnets into bodies of water, and hoist them out to see what sticks." In this case, something stuck.
James Kane and Barbie Agostini, both from Queens, did just that on Friday of last week and felt something heavy on the end of their line after a while. When they pulled the line up, they discovered an old safe.
“It was two stacks of freaking hundreds. Big stacks," Kane said. He added the bills were “soaking wet, pretty much destroyed".
Sadly, however, the money looked to have been ruined by the water, the New York Post added.
Kane, a seasoned magnet fisherman, remarked that he and Agostini have encountered numerous safes in the past, typically finding them empty except for some plastic bags that once contained money.
Kane admitted he cursed out loud in surprise. Agostini didn't believe him at first.
“He showed me and once I saw the actual dollars and the security ribbons I lost it,” Agostini said.
“I guess the finders keepers rule worked for us,” Kane said. He noted that the couple called the police but there was no way to identify who owned the safe, which they guessed was probably stolen.
The couple started 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 concluded.
