Bidding for the boat

EBay has a mess on its hands after a rogue auctioneer tries to sell Elian's "genuine" raft.

By Daryl Lindsey

May 3, 2000 | Elian's "genuine" raft is the latest, greatest tasteless offering to embarrass online flea market free-for-all eBay. The digital auction house for the lowest common denominator pulled the macabre offering of highly dubious authenticity, but only after bids soared as high as $10 million, according to a report in the San Francisco Chronicle.

It took the life of his mother and a handful of others, left young Elian sunburned like fried pigskin and now you can own it yourself. "This raft is still in the Govt. warehouse where I purchased it, but it will be cleared for release on June 1st," the description of the item stated. "This is a genuine piece of American history. The high bidder will become the owner of the most desirable piece of memorabilia from the new millennium."

As with so many eBay auctions, placing a bid is easier than proving the item's provenance. But National Committee to Send Elian Home to Cuba coordinator Richard Becker takes a stab at it in the paper: "That sounds about as credible as the Shroud of Turin."

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