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Second auction for Nevada recluse’s gold fortune

Appraiser Howard Herz talks about gold coins being auctioned off more in Carson City, Nev., on Tuesday, Feb. 26. Sixty-nine-year-old Walter Samaszko, Jr. died in June 2012, leaving thousands of gold coins in his garage.

Mexican 50 peso pieces were among the $3.5 million in gold coins auctioned off in Carson City, Nev., on Tuesday, Feb. 26.

Stacks of Krugerrand coins were among the collection auctioned off in Carson City, Nev., on Tuesday, Feb. 26.

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By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

August 5, 2013 - 1:37 pm

CARSON CITY, Nev. — The final treasures of a quiet man who collected a fortune in gold coins will be auctioned off Tuesday in Nevada.

The body of Walter Samaszko Jr. was found in his Carson City home in June 2012. After his death, a cleaning crew hired to tidy his modest home came upon a stunning discovery — boxes and boxes full of gold coins and bullion collected over an unassuming lifetime.

The fortune, after taxes, will go to Samaszko’s only surviving cousin, a substitute teacher in California.

The first batch, mostly bullion, was sold at auction in February for $3.5 million. Tuesday’s auction at the Carson City courthouse includes more than 2,600 coins to be sold in six lots.

Carson City Clerk-Recorder Alan Glover says five bidders are expected to participate.

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