How often do you find an Italian sportscar of yesteryears sitting at the bottom of a canal, rusting its life away? In a rather interesting turn of events, a 1987 Ferrari Mondial that was stolen in the Netherlands back in 1994 has been recovered after potentially spending as long as 26 years in one of the city’s many waterways. Draped in trademark Ferrari red, the vintage beauty has lost all of its charm and gorgeousness. It was found by Dutch fire brigade divers during a training exercise in Amsterdam’s IJ waterway in June.
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Police were notified of the strange discovery on June 17 and they organized their own dive on June 29. It wasn’t easy to pull the job though as the police force had to ask the Ministry of Defense to provide assistance and it was finally brought out of the water on July 8 in a horrible state.
After it was found, the authorities were able to determine that this was the missing Mondial from the 1994 case. The police discovered that the owners were compensated for the theft by the concerned insurance company. Authorities also informed that hat no violent crime had occurred within the vehicle, citing the forensic research reports. In a tweet shared by the local police, they shared the video of the car being pulled out of the canal with the caption “ There it is! The 1987 Ferrari that was accidentally found in the waters of the Javakade by fire brigade divers during a training day on June 17, surfaced at the end of the day on July 9.”
Evidence pointing to possible suspects was also absent, forcing authorities to formally reseal the case. No longer needed as evidence in a criminal investigation, the Ferrari has been handed over to its legal owner, its insurer, which has sent the soiled supercar to be scrapped at a local shop. “We have put the car for display at our company for now. There is a lot of interest in the car. Both complete and for parts,” said De Ooyevaar Autodemontage, the scrapyard where the Ferrari is located, in a message to The Drive.
“The thing is that we are not allowed to sell the car completely. However, when it could go to a museum, the government will make an exception and allows us to sell the car complete. When [sic] we can’t find a museum willing to display the car, we are forced to dismantle the car in parts. Most parts can’t be used on the other car, but a lot of collectors are willing to buy parts for collectables, or to transform them into furniture. Like the engine, they want to fix up and turn it into a table with a glass plate on top of it.”
Also read: Man Finds A Lost Pick-Up Truck Underwater[Video]
Ferrari Mondial might not be the most talked-about Ferrari but what matters is the fact that it is a Ferrari! It was powered by a 2.9-litre V8 engine. It was intended to serve as the touring car model within the Ferrari lineup. And also, it continues to be one of the most controversial Ferraris in history.