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I thought the group may be interested in this article I ran across today in the Miami Herald. I don't have any information beyond what is printed here. Perhaps you could e-mail the author if you have questions.
Stan
Posted Friday, Miami Herald | ||||
Sub buyer takes a plungeA Fort Lauderdale man's $49,000 bid won him a yellow submarine Thursday at an auction of property seized by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement department. hwasch@herald.com GOVERNMENT AUCTION The 21-foot, submersible watercraft auctioned off on Thursday may not be the ''Yellow Submarine'' that the Beatles made famous in 1968. But that image certainly didn't hurt the 2-year-old sub's market value. Yacht broker John Morrow snagged it for $49,000. Not a bad deal for something that retails new at $125,000. The sub was one of about 300 items sold during Thursday's auction at the Broward County Convention Center in Fort Lauderdale, including cosmetics, swimsuits, auto parts and bottles of liquor. The bidders were making their stake on property seized by either Immigration and Customs Enforcement or U.S. Customs and Border Protection, both arms of the Department of Homeland Security; or the Internal Revenue Service. The property was taken from people accused of drug smuggling, tax evasion, fraud, export violation and other offenses. A fast-talking auctioneer rattled off bids while four ringmen walked around the room, yelling, whistling and otherwise encouraging people to place a bid. Bidders held up yellow pieces of paper with numbers on them. ''It's like organized confusion,'' said auctioneer Jim Buzzella. ``It's a rush.'' For his first auction, Morrow made an unusual purchase. He went there expressly to buy the 21-foot submarine for one of his Canadian clients. According to the sub's manufacturer, Seahorse Submarines, the underwater craft retails for $125,000 brand new, which saved Morrow's client $76,000. ''I had him on the phone the whole time,'' said Morrow, 56, of Fort Lauderdale. ``I certainly did not advise him to spend that much money, but he said he really wanted the sub.'' The sub's previous owners allegedly attempted to export it illegally. It was seized and forfeited to the government, according to ICE spokesman Zachary Mann. The energy and intensity from the bidders was apparent throughout the 3 ½-hour auction, especially when cars and trucks and boats were up for bid. ''It gets nuts in here,'' said Mike Lewis, regent sales manager for EG&G, the company hired by ICE to run the auctions. ``The place gets packed and the energy rises.'' Thursday's auction saw the sale of a 2001 Jaguar convertible, a 2001 Yamaha Waverunner, a 1997 Ford Expedition, several fishing boats and a cargo ship. And even though people at such auctions are looking for a steal, items are sometimes sold in the heat of bidding for far more than they're actually worth. The Jaguar sold for $31,500. But, according to www.carmax.com, a popular used-car website, the same car sells for thousands less elsewhere. ''It's amazing how often people bid more than the blue book value,'' said Eric Knight, 44, from West Allis, Wisc., who travels to Fort Lauderdale for every auction. | ||||