Professional Treasure Hunters in Reality

Treasure Hunting is a concept many will be familiar with. For book readers, their knowledge of the concept is likely to have come from a book like Treasure Island, while for movie followers, the popular Disney franchise, Pirates of the Caribbean is a good explanation of the idea. While the stories in these creative projects may have been fictional, treasure hunting is a very real enterprise and one man who has built a legacy on it is Roger Miklos.

Roger Miklos, who can be said to have lived two lives, first as a policeman and the other as a treasure hunter has made a name for himself in the enterprise since he began in the 70s. Here, we take a quick look at his life and his journey from maintaining law and order to being the man who scours the seas for treasure.

Biography – Roger Miklos

In a niche profession like Treasure Hunting, it takes a certain amount of passion and dedication to be invested in it enough to have your child follow in your footsteps. These are qualities Roger Miklos had during his time as a renowned treasure hunter.

His life began in the year 1942, with the specific month and date currently unknown. He was born to William and Marie Miklos who raised him in Cleveland, Ohio. When Roger Miklos became a man, having graduated from at least high school, he joined the police force.
Before he moved to Texas, as a result of his work as a police officer, he worked in Reno, Nevada, he also worked in Lake Arrowhead, California and in the Bahamas in Nassau, working alongside the DEA.

One would have thought his law enforcement life would have been enough for Roger, but he was a man who sought the thrill of discovery and after spending years in Reno, Nevada, he moved to Cocoa Beach in Florida alongside with his family, which included his wife, Sheila.

Through the knowledge from treasure books he had read, he set out to the ocean with metal detectors to find coins. His tenacity at his search for treasure eventually drew the attention of a man who also shared the same interest and had made a big discovery at some point in his life, Kip Wagner.

Together with Kip Wagner, Roger Miklos began life as a professional treasure hunter. Throughout the 70s, he specialized in excavating shipwreck sites. His continued journey as a treasure hunter led him to meet other notable hunters like the Astronaut Gordon Cooper. He also appeared on The Merv Griffin Show. Before he died, he was a regular star on the Discovery Channel show, Cooper’s Treasure.

While he was alive, he made a few major discoveries, such as recovering artifacts from a treasure ship, Atocha which was lost in 1622. The artifacts on the ship were considered to have been worth at least $60 million.

Roger Miklos eventually retired from active hunting after four decades and passed on the life to his son, Darrell, who now currently stars on Cooper’s Treasure.

Net Worth

We do not have the exact net worth for Roger Miklos. We do know he starred in some television shows, particularly on the Discovery Channel and made a couple of sizeable discoveries. However, his son, Darrell Miklos who has followed in his father’s footsteps to become a treasure hunter. Darrell Miklos continues to star on Cooper’s Treasure on the Discovery Channel and he is believed to be worth a total of $1.5 million. The buck of the net worth is believed to have come from starring on the show, which has so far spent two seasons on the air since its debut in 2017.

Death

Unfortunately, after a long and adventurous life, Roger Miklos died on the 19th of February, 2018. He died in Iraan, Texas. Though he was old at the time of his death, passing away at the respectable age of 76, it was an unexpected death that came as a shock to his family.

According to reports, Roger Miklos was on his way, traveling through Texas when he stopped to get some rest in a rest area and while there, had an unexpected heart attack.

He was buried on the 4th of April 2018 after a memorial service was held in his honor at the Key West United Methodist Church in Key West.
Roger Miklos was survived by his wife, Sheila, and his children, Laurie, Kim, Kelly, and Darrell.