You are here
Man in Italy accidentally trashes 20 gold bars worth $140,000
Thanks to heroic police and sanitation workers, he got them back. But now everybody knows where they are.
* * *
By Gabrielle Rockson
People Magazine, New York
Monday, February 16, 2026
A man in Italy accidentally threw 20 bars of gold into the garbage.
On Thursday, Feb, 12, the police revealed that a 57-year-old man in southern Italy took out his trash without realizing that his gold, worth around 120,000 euros ($142,000), was inside, according to Corriere della Sera, Reuters, and Italien News.
... Dispatch continues below ...
... ADVERTISEMENT ...
Ireland's Tree of Life Gold and Silver Coins Are Available
from Money Metals Exchange For Delivery or Secure Storage in Idaho
Money Metals Exchange and Tara Coins, supporters of sound money and GATA, are selling Ireland's Tree of Life Gold and Silver Coins, non-legal tender, for U.S. and international delivery or secure storage in the ultra-secure MMX vault in Eagle, Idaho:
https://www.moneymetals.com/
The Gold and Silver Trees of Life can be bought directly by retail stackers, retail distributors, and wholesale dealers. The Gold Trees (.9999 purity) are in 1-ounce, 0.25-ounce, and 0.1-ounce sizes, and the Silver Trees (.999 purity) in 1-ounce size.
All are approved for individual retirement accounts.
Tara Coins is a designer, wholesaler, and retailer of Irish bullion products, selling beautiful, store-of-value, 99.99% pure Irish silver and gold bullion.
The Gold Trees of Life are the first 99.99%-pure Irish bullion coins and are beautiful and truly sovereign (non-legal tender) coins.
For more information, visit Ireland Trees of Life at Money Metals Exchange --
https://www.moneymetals.com/
-- or contact Shane Lee at shane.lee@moneymetals.com
After realizing his mistake the next day, the man alerted authorities at the Carabinieri police station in Porto Cesare, who reviewed security footage of the man’s actions to verify his report, per Corriere della Sera.
The individual, who has not been named, had bought gold over the years and kept the bars inside a tin box before mistakenly throwing them into the trash in Torre Lapillo, a hamlet of Porto Cesareo, in the country's Puglia region, according to the outlet. ...
... For the remainder of the report:
https://people.com/man-accidentally-throws-20-bars-gold-garbage-11907198
* * *
Support GATA by purchasing
Stuart Englert's "Rigged"
"Rigged" is a concise explanation of government's currency market rigging policy and extensively credits GATA's work exposing it. Ten percent of sales proceeds are contributed to GATA. Buy a copy for $14.99 through Amazon:
* * *
Help keep GATA going:
GATA is a civil rights and educational organization based in the United States and tax-exempt under the U.S. Internal Revenue Code. Its e-mail dispatches are free, and you can subscribe at:
To contribute to GATA, please visit:
Donations of $500 or more will entitle the donor to a 1-ounce silver round commemorating GATA's work:
https://www.gata.org/sites/default/files/GATA-silver-round-front.png
