I saw a show once about that guy Mel Fisher. If the show was an accurate portrayal of events surrounding that treasure ship he discovered in the Florida Keys, he really got screwed.
Well, him giving $10 million dollars of stones away for appraisal fees didn’t help his bottom line any. There must be more to that story. I seem to recall you are right though, I think he spent a lot of money fighting the government over the find.
Never underestimate the governments ability to fornicate you over about anything.