13. YAMASHITA’S GOLD

When did World War two start? When did it finish? Who fought alongside the Japanese? Who fought against the Japanese? Which countries did Japan invade?

The Imperial Japanese army took treasure from Korea, China, French Indo-China, Thailand, British Burma and Malaya and also Singapore. They put all the treasure in ships and sent it back to Japan but the ships never reached Japan. The treasure went missing. It has been missing since the end of World War Two. How long has it been missing? The man in charge of the treasure ships was General Yamashita. He is dead now and his treasure is lost.

Some people say the treasure is in caves in the mountains. Some people say it is hidden in tunnels. Some say Ferdinand Marcos found it and now it is in a bank account in Switzerland. Who was Marcos? Would you live in Switzerland? Some say it is in sunken ships at the bottom of the sea. Is finding treasure at the bottom of the sea difficult?

The castaway from the Imperial Japanese Army says he saw the ships sink. How many ships were there? How many tons of gold were there on the ships? Were there any Ming Dynasty vases on the ships?

When did the castaway first come to this island? What branch of the military was he in? What was his rank? Did he serve in China? Did he serve in any other Asian countries?

When did America invade Japan? Where are the American bases in Japan now? Should Yamashita’s gold belong to the finder or the original owner? Should Hitler’s treasure belong to the original owners?