Treasure Hunter Hits Pay Dirt in Attic of Family's Home

A New England treasure hunter has proven decades of rumor right for a family who've long believed a box of cash was stashed in a home's attic. After multiple fruitless attempts of their own, Keith Wille was hired by the family to search the Western Massachusetts home prior to its sale after the death of their aunt, per WFSB. On his YouTube, Wille is led through the attic by the family, who show him where floorboards had previously been pulled up while reciting family lore about using the position of windows and sunshine cast on the floor to locate the long lost cash dating to the 1950's. But rather than hearsay, Wille, a a self-described metal "detectorist," relies on technology.

Using his metal detector, an endoscopic camera, and his cell phone, Wille was able to put years of rumor to rest in just about an hour. After finding signs of metal in a corner, Wille saw some old cuts in the corner floorboards and fished his camera beneath the floor, where he spotted the keyhole of what looked to be a lockbox. After pulling up the boards and retrieving the box, Wille removed the hinge to reveal stacks of cash. As the family watched, Wille pulled out bills dating back to the Great Depression, some of which are likely worth more than their face value to collectors, and amounting to $46,000. "The family now has closure," Wille tells his YouTube viewers. "Now, they can sell the house." (More treasure hunters stories.)