US$800,000 lost model of Star Trek’s USS Enterprise, found in a storage locker, sails into the unknown with lawsuit
- A model of the USS Enterprise, prototype for the version used in the opening credits of TV series Star Trek and believed lost for 45 years, turned up in 2023
- The men who found the US$800,000 model were persuaded not to auction it but to sell it for less to the son of the series’ creator. Now they’re suing for fraud
In April, Heritage Auctions heralded the discovery of the original model of the USS Enterprise, the starship that whooshed through the stars in the opening credits of the 1960s television series Star Trek but had mysteriously disappeared around 45 years ago.
The model was kept at Heritage’s office, in Los Angeles in the US state of California, for “safekeeping”, the house proclaimed in a statement, shortly after an individual discovered it and brought it to Heritage for authentication.
But the journey has been far from smooth. The starship model and its celebrated return are now the subject of a lawsuit alleging fraud, negligence and deceptive trade practice, highlighting the enduring value of memorabilia from the sci-fi television series.
The case was brought by Dustin Riach and Jason Rivas, long-time friends and self-described storage unit entrepreneurs who discovered the model among a stash of items they bought “sight unseen” from a lien sale at a storage locker in Los Angeles in October 2023.