One of the most tragic stories has been revealed in Wales, after young James Howells literally lost an entire treasure through his hands. In fact, he didn't just lose it, he threw it in the trash. As the 28-year-old Briton claims, last summer he threw away a hard drive containing 7,500 bitcoins, which are virtual currencies whose current value exceeds a thousand dollars.
James Howells started collecting bitcoins in 2009, when they were worth next to nothing. But a year later, his computer overheated, causing him to not only stop buying the virtual currency, but also put his hard drive in a drawer and forget about it for a while.
In a summer clean-up, Howells decided to throw away his record, having forgotten about bitcoins and not following their huge rise in value. However, upon learning of their current value, the Briton… lost his mind after realizing that he had essentially lost around 5.5 million euros through his hands.
The worst thing for the 28-year-old is that he knows very well where his "treasure" is. It is in an electronics dump in Newport, Wales, but the area is the size of a football pitch, making it very difficult to find it again.
"When I first saw the value of bitcoins, my first thought was: It's done," he explained to the BBC. "The manager confirmed my worst fears when he explained to me that the waste that arrived here three to four months ago is now 1-1.5 meters below other rubbish," he added.
Now, his only hope is to organize a large-scale investigation. "They do it when they are looking for evidence in important cases such as the commission of a crime. But to do this job, you need fifteen to twenty people, with special suits, cranes and dogs. I don't have the means to finance such an operation without being sure that in the end I will get my money back..." concluded the almost millionaire.
