AUSTRALIA
Is this hill in Poland the location of the Nazi 'gold train'? Treasure hunters claim this is the spot where Hitler's loot was buried
* Two treasure hunters claim to have found Nazi gold train buried in a hill in Poland
* Train thought to be packed with gold, gems and money from 1945
* Nazis wanted to hide fortune from advancing Soviet Red Army, wanted loot as insurance policy for fleeing war criminals
* The men lodged a claim to it and will claim 10 per cent of the fortune
* Another group claim they identified the site two years ago with sonar equipment - but maps and data were stolen
By Ed Wight In Walbrzeg, Poland and Allan Hall In Berlin for MailOnline
Published: 18:14 EST, 22 August 2015 | Updated: 19:00 EST, 22 August 2015
Beneath these hills lies the fortune in Nazi gold estimated in the billions that has captured the imagination of a continent.
As Klondike-style treasure hunters swoop on a small Polish town this weekend - lured there by reports of a fabulous treasure looted by Germans in the dying days of WW2 - the story of the 'gold train' took more unexpected twists on Friday as MailOnline travelled to the scene.
A group calling itself The Silesian Research Group insists that it in fact found the legendary train here over two years ago.
And it says a duo who filed a claim with local authorities for the treasure two weeks ago somehow pilfered their information.
Buried treasure: The train - which legend says disappeared in 1945 as the Nazis tried to get their stolen treasure to safety - is said to be buried underneath this hill in Poland
Those two men, a Pole and a German, have told local officials they will divulge the exact location of the lost train for 10 per cent of the value of its cargo.
If they are right in having discovered Third Reich plunder, such a reward could make them billionaires overnight.
We know that in May 1945 gold and other valuables from the city of Wroclaw were being transported to Walbrzych when they disappeared.
Group that claims to have discovered the train two years ago
But they are not the ones who found it first, according to the research team. One group member, who asked not to be identified after receiving threatening phone calls from a 'mysterious man,' told MailOnline: 'About two or three years ago we carried out extensive research of the area using geo-radar and magnetic readings.
'We came across an anomaly about 70 metres below the surface and further investigation revealed this was most likely a train.
'It is well-known that the Nazis built a network of railway lines under the mountains.
'And we know that in May 1945 gold and other valuables from the city of Wroclaw were being transported to Walbrzych when they disappeared between the towns of Lubiechow and Swiebodzice.'
Resting at the foot of the Sowa - Owl - mountains in woods three miles outside of the town of Walbrzeg in western Poland, is the alleged train, filled with gold, possibly diamonds and maybe even masterpieces stolen from Polish noble families and museums.
According to legend, the Nazis loaded all the valuables they had looted in Wroclaw - then called Breslau and part of Greater Germany - to escape the advancing Red Army.
The researcher went on: 'During the war, there used to be an SS barracks here which was heavily guarded. And just behind the railway bridge was the entrance to the tunnel.
Network: It is thought the train went into one of a series of tunnels the Nazis built in the mountain, like this one
Loot: An American soldier pictured with a box full of rings discovered after the liberation of Buchenwald concentration camp. Huge hauls like this one were found by the Allies when the Nazis fled
'We recorded our findings and marked the location on a map as well as storing the information on computer records.
'We were and are convinced that this is where the gold train is. But, soon after our discovery, the map and data for the area went missing. At first we thought it had been mislaid, but then we heard about the findings of these two people and we realised they must have got hold of our information.'
He then added that he had been 'warned off' talking about the subject or investigating it further.
He said: 'Last night I received a phone call from a mysterious man who warned me to stay away from the story and to not get involved.
'A lot of dangerous people are interested in finding this train, this could have been a warning from one of them.
'This man who called me knows that I know something.'
Local historian and expert on the mysteries of the Sowa mountains, Joanna Lamparska, said: 'There are two main theories about the gold train.
'One is that is hidden under the mountain itself. The second is that it is somewhere around Wałbrzych.
'Until now, no-one has ever seen documents that confirm the existence of this train.'
Fairytale: Local legend has it the train disappeared not far from Ksiaz Castle, which was the Nazi's headquarters in the area, which was under their control during the Second World War
What gives credence the possibility that the story is true is the mammoth subterranean project called RIESE - German for giant - which was the construction of a honeycomb of tunnels, bunkers and underground stations begun in 1941.
Stretching from the gothic castle of Ksiaz overlooking the town of Walbrzeg they built the labyrinth deep into the surrounding mountains. The idea was to move supplies, factories and workers underground in the event of Allied bombing.
We don't know where the entrance is as we need permission to dig. But we have carried out tests and we know something is there.
Local explorer and treasure hunter Andrzej Boczek, who is also a member of the Silesian Research Group, guided MailOnline to the site where he says the train is buried.
He said: 'We think it is here because first of all it is between the two places were we know it disappeared. And it is just 2.37km from Ksiaz castle which was the German headquarters during the war. That's where all treasures were taken.'
The 55-year-old, who has been searching the region for 25 years and has already found numerous artefacts, said: 'Also, this path used to be where the path ran down to the tunnel,' he says pointing at a dirt track leading towards the woods.
'We don't know where the entrance is as we need permission to dig. But we have carried out tests and we know something is there.
'During the war this place was open to the public and then it suddenly was closed by the Germans, they clearly had a secret to hide.
'A man who lived nearby told me he used to see strange activity at night with trains rolling in and disappearing into the tunnel.'
Two other locations identified by local media in Poland have since been rubbished by experts.
One is close to the town of Walbrzych the other in the town of Walim, 17km away.
Legend: The trains existence has always be source of debate, but now two people claim to have found it. Pictured: Train tracks leading to the tunnel under the mountain
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Historian Mrs. Lamparska added: 'These two areas are very well known and have been well-researched. The chances of the train being there are zero.
'It is likely that they found something, however, whether this is the gold train is a different matter.'
Polish media are now reporting that the Polish Ministry of Defence have known about the existence of the findings for two weeks and that the country's Internal Security Service has also got involved in the search.
It would be an incredible discovery if true. But no-one could ever prove the existence of this train.
Nazi treasure has always caught the imagination of people. The prospect of finding the Amber Room of the Czars, or the lost Rembrandts pilfered by regime magpie Hermann Goering, fuels a weekend treasure hunting obsession deep in the soul of many Germans.
The news of a heavily armoured freight train parked in the yet-to-be-disclosed tunnel has sent people from across Germany and Poland to the area with metal detectors.
Germans piling on to trains the spoils of their carpetbagging in foreign lands towards the end of the war was not a rare occurrence. And the Reichsbank in Berlin, many of its buildings and vaults shattered by intense American and British air raids, used precious Deutsche Bahn rolling stock to hide treasure in regional towns, often in the cellars of fortified post offices.
The loot was destined for a number of purposes: getaway money for high-ranking war criminals, the basis for a German resistance movement called 'Werewolf' intended to fight the occupiers; and to become the pension funds for generals whose vast estates bequeathed to them by a grateful Fuhrer in the east which fell into the hands of new, unforgiving owners.
That is why the story of the 590-foot long train which steamed into the tunnel long ago has fired the imagination of many. But it also comes with many caveats, as expressed by Focus magazine in Germany, which asked: 'Is there really a train and is it mined?
Controversy: There is a second group of treasure hunters who claim to have found the train, however. Andzrej Boczek, one of the members, even showed MailOnline where he believes it to be hidden
Logical: Boczek says the spot - 1.4 miles from Ksiaz castle - is the most likely location for the train
'This has stoked treasure fever in Lower Silesia. Two men have supposedly discovered a hidden underground train from the second World War. The media speculate on gold and diamonds. Others warn: it is all just a beautiful legend.'
For some it is indeed the latter.
'This is an ongoing issue,' added Lamparska. 'A search has been going on for years for a legendary train that was supposed to be hidden in an underground tunnel.
'It would be an incredible discovery if true. But no-one could ever prove the existence of this train.'
It is the circumstantial evidence giving cohesion to this high summer tale: the reluctance of officials to dismiss out of hand the claim and the fact that there indeed was the giant underground complex with an extensive tunnel system located near Wałbrzych during the war.
The treasure hunters claim they found the train 210 feet below ground using radar. They provided another detail - the train is allegedly armoured, looking not dissimilar to that used by the Nazis on several fronts during the war.
But while hope remains eternal, there are fears that this latest gold rush may turn out to be the triumph of hope over reality.
Andrzej Gaik, who gives guided tours to tourists through the old Castle of the Princes of Walbrzych, believed for many years in the legend of the 'Golden train' and even went on a treasure hunt for it himself some years ago - in vain.
He told a Polish TV station: 'In my opinion no one is on the trail of the train. Because it doesn't exist.' Given the news that has been coming out of Europe of late, however, this is one ripping yarn that has some way to go before it hits the buffers.
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