I was reading the posting on the transporting of gold bars and it touched something during our recent convention, the new plunder law was discussed, especially for government employees and officials.
If you ever retrieved more than enough gold bars, will you sell it all at once and deposit the proceeds in a bank? Of course you may but take note of this:
1. If you are a government employee/official, and it became a common knowledge that you have a bank deposit of more than P500,000 PhP that is beyond your capability to earn thru your income, then they can charge you with PLUNDER thru UNEXPLAINED WEALTH especially if your cash deposit is not specified or declared in your SALN (Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Networth) and the bank secrecy law flies to the window in your case. Your account will be open for verification, it will be freezed during the pendency of the case.
2. Even bank certificate of authenticity on gold so that you can open an account abroad could now be traced, unless you opened your account in a certain bank in the Bahamas.
3. To prevent this, one must not deposit more than half a million PhP in a bank (preferably on private banks, not the government banks), and use SEVERAL DEPOSITOR'S if you must.
In the case of private citizen, if you did not pay your Income Tax or there is a big difference in the filed BIR statement then they can still freeze your assets just the same.
So in the case of treasure hunters, would it be much better to put up a vault in a SECRET ROOM where you can keep all the proceeds?; or sell only enough gold for your use in a year?
As for secret rooms, make a room, preferably 1.2 meters width and cover it with a fixed built-in cabinet with the door as false wall. Place shoes in it so not to make it obvious and never let the children know it.