Koresh car sells for $37,500
Buyer to store Camaro until he finds someone who 'has to have it'
01:23 PM CDT on Sunday, September 26, 2004
FREDERICKSBURG, Texas – A classic Camaro once owned by Branch Davidian leader David Koresh brought $37,500 at auction Saturday.
Donald Feldpausch, a 64-year-old San Antonio car wash owner, said he didn't intend to buy the 1968 Chevrolet Camaro when he went to a classic car auction in Fredericksburg but changed his mind when he saw the vehicle.
He said he plans to store the car until he hears from someone "who just has to have it."
The black, V-8 Camaro was captured in news footage being pushed out of the way by a tank during the 1993 siege of the Branch Davidian compound near Waco. The siege ended with Mr. Koresh and almost 80 followers dying as the complex burned.
"What he did was horrible, but I don't want to get into the politics of it," Mr. Feldpausch told the San Antonio Express-News. "The Koresh name doesn't bother me. I guess it's sort of like buying a home after somebody committed a murder in it."
A car dealer purchased the vehicle from the federal government after it was seized from the compound. Waco resident Darrell Makovey bought it last year and restored it.
Even though the paint is new, it still has the markings where the tank bumped it.
Mr. Koresh drove the Camaro routinely and had stamped "David's 427 go God" on the engine block.
Auctioneer Daniel Kruse of Auburn, Ind., said before the auction that the car was worth about $40,000 as a classic car. He expected it to bring up to $60,000 because of its historical significance.
Online at: http://www.khou.com/news/state/stories/khou040926_gj_koreshcar.1166dafd.html