Avast, Ye Insider!

Remember Odyssey Marine Exploration, the publicly traded treasure-hunting operation that found $500 million worth of buried treasure off the coast of Spain last May?

Well, no word on all that bullion and sterling yet, but the Securities and Exchange Commission says that it has dug up something of its own: insider trading.

Ernesto Tapanes, one of the oceanographic surveying consultants who discovered the lucrative shipwreck, is accused of breaching his non-disclosure agreement and buying up Odyssey Marine stock before news of the big find was made public. After news of the treasure came to light, he sold the stake for a profit of $107,000 once the stock spiked, the commission says.

The S.E.C. may be a regulatory landlubber, but it knows these waters pretty well.

Tapanes has agreed to pay a disgorgement of the full $107,101.92, plus prejudgment interest of $2,151.56, as well as an additional civil penalty of $107,101.92. He's also barred from messing around with the stock market again.

While Tapanes' fortunes have had a setback in his attempt to pirate the pirate treasure, it remains to be seen whether outside investors will ever see penny of gain. The company continues to post losses as it hashes out legalities with the Spanish government.

Still, shares of Odyssey Marine are trading 25 percent above early-May levels -- which is more than you can say for the Nasdaq.

Liz Gunnision

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