Municipality asks people to stop searching for alleged Nazi treasure near Ommeren

The municipality of Buren used its website to advise against looking for a treasure near Ommeren, which is said to have been buried there by German soldiers at the end of World War II. The Nazi soldiers had reportedly buried jewelry, precious stones, gold watches and coins in ammunition boxes after finding them in Arnhem. Back then, the valuables had been blown out of the safe in an Arnhem bank during the violent war.

The reason for this was that this week the National Archives unveiled a real treasure map showing the location marked with a cross, which immediately received a great deal of media attention.

According to the website of the municipality of Buren, of which Ommeren is a part, it received "many inquiries about this treasure map and the Nazi treasure" and now feels compelled to warn treasure hunters of dangers and prohibitions.

"Experts point out that the area is near the front line of World War II. Searching there is dangerous because of possible unexploded bombs, land mines or shells. Therefore, we do not advise searching for the Nazi treasure," the municipality of Buren stressed.

In addition, It is also "prohibited to use or have with you a metal detector or any other object for detecting metal objects in public without an exemption from the mayor and aldermen", the municipality continued.

However, it is unlikely that anything will be found. After the war, several frantic but unsuccessful searches were made for the treasures, also with detectors in the wider area. The original source of the story, a furniture maker from Baden-Baden who was active in Velp as a parachutist for the German army, was still involved in 1947 to give the Dutch authorities instructions. But the efforts were in vain. The question is now, whether his story was a fabrication or whether others dug up the treasures.