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US Marshals turn to digital billboards to track treasure-hunt fugitives

May 7, 2013

The U.S. Marshals Service has begun posting alerts on digital billboards in Ohio and Florida in an effort to capture a treasure hunter who found gold nearly three decades ago and then left his partners in the lurch.

According to Fox News, Tommy Thompson remains wanted after failing to appear in an Ohio court last year following his 1987 discovery of millions of dollars in gold bars and coins from the SS Central America, a 280-foot ship that sank during a hurricane off the North Carolina coast in 1857.

The notices, carried on 10 billboards, appear for seconds between paid advertisements. A deputy marshal in Columbus, Ohio told Fox that authorities hope the messages will prompt increased tips about the pair. The boards include an image of Thompson's assistant, Alison Antekeier, whose arrest was also ordered after they failed to appear in court last year.

Learn more about digital billboards.