ACCG Lund Defence Fund

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As reported widely in the US media, through what he describes as a miscommunication, a member of the US coin-collecting brotherhood is in serious trouble with the authorities in Israel and has lost an entire ancient coin collection to them and it seems to me that he is is dire need of some support from fellow ancient coin collectors. As we all know,

The Ancient Coin Collectors Guild is a non-profit organization committed to promoting the free and independent collecting of coins from antiquity. The goal of the guild is to foster an environment in which the general public can confidently and legally acquire and hold any numismatic item of historical interest regardless of date or place of origin. ACCG strives to achieve its goals through education, political action, and consumer protection.

Dr John Lund is doing research for an upcoming book and unthinkingly took a binder containing a collection of ancient coins with him when he travelled on business to Israel which has been seized by Israeli authorities. We are told that the book is called "Bible Coins of Interest to Christians". This meant that Lund's lost coin binder contained a collection of "many coins, including Greek, Persian, Roman and Egyptian coins in addition to Jewish coins". These objects were he stresses legally purchased and exported "on previous trips around the Mediterranean region" and legally owned in the United States where he lives (in Utah). The Israelis are challenging this, so this seems like a forthcoming battle right up the ACCG's street. It challenges everything they say about ancient coin ownership, "collectors' rights" and property rights.

This was the second batch of antiquities from his collection which Dr Lund had had confiscated by the Israelis in a fortnight. According to an Israel Antiquities Authority press release, he was detained in Jerusalem about "two weeks" before his arrest at Ben Gurion airport and had had a collection of "hundreds of antiquities" (including coins) seized when authorities searched his room. Again, coins he says were legally owned and brought as private property through Israeli customs from his home in America.

Lund said he had been questioned at customs about the items when he entered Israel and allowed to pass without any problems. The problems arose when he tried to take the same collection of objects back home. He claims that nobody had explained to him anything about Israeli law on the passage of such items across international borders. Lund said he's concerned for American tourists in Israel who are in the dark like he was.

"Innocently, all over the place, people are buying items, hauling them out of the country and not even aware that they're technically smugglers," he said. "I think Israel has an obligation to let us know that".

Well, although I think Israel does that already some may agree with Dr Lund (a collector of 'Biblical coins") that more could be done. I think therefore this is somewhere the ACCG could supply advice notes for collectors who might be faced with similar problems during their travels abroad. Just how do the laws of popular US holiday destinations affect the ability of collectors to own ancient coins while abroad? I think this case shows all too transparently that collectors need to be informed, and who better to accomplish this task than the Ancient Coin Collectors' Guild.

Dr Lund now has to get his property - including his "biblical coin" collection - back from the Israelis, because if he does not this is a huge blow against the "rights" which US collectors claim.

Lund plans to appeal to the U.S. Embassy and find a lawyer versed in international antiquities laws to fight the charges, which he says stemmed from a simple miscommunication..

It seems to me that this is a task for Peter Tompa and his firm Bailey and Ehrenberg, the legal firm in the nation's capital with a lot of experience of fighting governmental injustice and intransigence specifically in the field of the legality of coin imports and exports.

So, I assume that in the next few days in their efforts to uphold US "collectors' rights", to promote the free and independent collecting of coins from antiquity and "foster an environment in which the general public can confidently and legally acquire and hold any numismatic item of historical interest regardless of date or place of origin" we will be seeing the creation of an ACCG John Lund Fighting Fund. Maybe a topical Benefit Auction - legally owned and previously collected "Biblical coins" only is in order? Let us see some expression of coiney collecting solidarity - or are the ACCG going to concentrate on those dealery things like the MOUs and leave a US collector to be pushed around and victimised by a foreign government?
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Utah Man Denies Antiquity Smuggling Accusation

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As we have seen, the artefact collector and antiquity dealer are all to frequently keen to play the victim. Another such victim seems to be the case of Utah tour guide John Lund, reportedly accused in Israel of selling artefacts without the required permits, and attempting to remove them from the country without an export permit (apparently on Monday May 16th, but he says 14th) . He signed some papers ("in Hebrew") admitting this, but upon his arrival in the States, he began protesting his innocence. See Sarah Dallof, 'Utah historian accused of smuggling antiquities out of Israel', May 19th, 2011. There's a video from KSL Broadcasting Salt Lake City (can't seem to embed it) in which he makes light of the charges, comparing himself to Goody Two Shoes encountering a "dragon". See also Matthew Kalman, 'Retired U.S. Academic Is Arrested in Israel on Suspicion of Antiquities Trafficking', The Chronicle of Higher Education May 18, 2011.

There is also a May 19th text by Sheena McFarland in the Salt Lake Tribune: 'Utah tour guide accused of smuggling Israeli artifacts'. (updated May 20th), and another in the same vein by Molly Farmer and Sarah Dallof, 'Murray resident John Lund accused of smuggling Israeli artifacts disputes allegations', Deseret News,May 20, 2011 (this one seems to have mysteriously vanished from the Internet, but is in Google cache).

He claims he'd brought these antiquities INTO Israel from the US as "teaching material". "Dr Lund admits he lacked the proper paperwork for some of these artefacts, but says he had no idea he needed it". That is a bit odd for somebody who has been leading tour groups there over the years. Part of the qualifications for which job should surely be familiarity with all local laws likely to affect the customers of the company which employs him in matters such as this. The information about needing export licences for antiquities from Israel is in many tour guides both printed and online.

A group of (American?) tourists was reportedly stopped and their 'property' seized on the Israel/Egypt border because they'd allegedly bought them from Lund and tried to remove them from the country without the proper formalities. Did Dr Lund not inform them about export procedures for these items? Did they REALLY not know that what they were doing was illegal? Or did they just not care? Did they lie when they said they had bought the items from Lund? I am surprised we have heard nothing from these people who are now out of pocket and labelled law-breakers due to the lack of information from the travel firm's agent.

I am unclear how Lund can claim he did not know of the legal requirements when, according to the Israel Antiquities Authority press release, he was detained in Jerusalem for allegedly selling antiquities about "two weeks" before his arrest at Ben Gurion airport and had "hundreds of antiquities" seized when authorities searched his room. This would presumably be when he was guiding this 14 day tour. Did he fail to enquire then why in fact he was having to surrender his 'property'? Or did he just hand hundreds, maybe thousands of dollars' worth of his property to the Israeli authorities with a shrug?

However, having once had all (?) the stuff in his room reportedly taken away, how come he was then in the middle of May two weeks later arrested taking more antiquities out of Israel without the paperwork? Where did he get them from? He is now stating he brought them into Israel from the States, so why were they not seized at the beginning of May with the rest, but ended up being seized two weeks later? If he could earlier prove legal import why was he no longer able to do so when he left the country? All very odd.

Journalist Chi-Chi Zhang of Associated press has a number of articles syndicated which present Lund's side of the story: 'Utah man accused in Israel of smuggling artifacts', and 'US tour guide says he didn't know bringing antique oil lamps, coins broke Israeli law', May 20th and on ArtDaily.com on May 23rd: ' Utah Tour Guide David Lund Accused by Government of Israel of Smuggling Artifacts'. The man's name is - apparently incorrectly - given there as "Tour guide David Lund" . Apparently:

the retired lecturer from Murray, Utah, said he was never informed of any wrongdoing in more than 30 years of guiding thousands of people to visit holy sites in the Middle East and bringing antiquities with him to tell biblical stories."They're saying I was trying to sneak these items out of Israel, and it's just a gross misrepresentation of the facts," the 70-year-old Lund said. His latest trip began earlier this month when he led a group of 96 tourists to Israel. Like his previous outings, Lund brought along antiquities such as oil lamps and coins to help illustrate the history and tell stories about the region. They were antiquities he said he had purchased on previous trips around the Mediterranean region. Lund said he was questioned at customs about the items when he entered Israel and allowed to pass without any problems.

So he's done this before? The logic of a tour guide "bringing antiquities with him to tell biblical stories" as he takes tourists around the sites and museums of the Holy Land beats me. Are there not enough objects in the museums to tell those stories? ("Helped tell biblical stories as part of the trip designed to highlight sites important to Christians", "He incorporates the artifacts into the tours by explaining the travelers the parables of Jesus" - so how many lamps and Roman glass vessels do you need to do that then? ). The photos show he had quite a few duplicates of each object type. Would not a powerpoint presentation on his laptop be enough for evening cultural talks? Why then do the Israeli Antiquity Authorities say they saw him selling these items? Are they not telling the truth? What would be the connection, if any, between the alleged sale watched by IAA staff and the reported seizure of artefacts from tourists, allegedly from the same group, at the Israeli border? If I understand what he is saying, Lund asserts that these artefacts were purchased from legitimate Israeli dealers - so why could those carrying them not show documentation of that fact? Why are these people not now coming forward to claim their property?

Elsewhere there is talk about Lund having seized from him a "binder of ancient coins he's using as research for an upcoming book" and we are told that he is writing a book "Bible Coins of Interest to Christians, which is why he had so many coins, including Greek, Persian, Roman and Egyptian coins in addition to Jewish coins". So he had these "Egyptian coins" when he was in Egypt too and managed to get them across the border? Lucky for him he was not stopped, eh? (I am not sure the Egyptians would let him go so easily). This of course raises the question of how many books on "["Biblical"] Coins of Interest to Christians" can the market take? I thought there were plenty of them - and websites, though none of the ones I have seen discuss the question of the sources, licit and illicit of the material they encourage people to acquire and collect. I find the fresh reports difficult to reconcile with the photos of the coins as seized, none are in a "binder" but there is at least one in a decorative olive wood box - hardly the sort of container I'd use to transport "research material" and several packaged with descriptive cards of the type attached by dealers to make an item more attractive - again, hardly necessary I would have thought for a "researcher". But... it takes all sorts I guess.

Lund said "he had no idea a visa (sic) was required to bring antiquities in and out of the country and was never told by any authorized dealers in Israel to do so". Concerning items brought into the country, there is a quite detailed customs notice online which lays down the procedure to be adopted when importing personal property worth more than 200 dollars and not falling into certain groups (which Mr Lund's travelling antiquity collection does not), and reminding travellers that "the exportation of [....] all antiquities [...] is subject to special authorization". If he was "questioned at customs about the [antique] items [in his baggage] when he entered Israel" (and he asserts and stresses that after questioning he was "allowed to pass without any problems"), would that not have alerted him, even if somehow previously ignorant of that fact, that the Israeli authorities take an interest in controlling the movements of such material across their frontiers? What about the requirement to declare items like this on entry? When he was "questioned" about them, was he not made aware of this? But then elsewhere Lund is confusingly reported as saying: "I understand why Israel would have strict policies on antiquities, but I don't understand why they didn't stop me when I entered the country if they had a problem with the items I had". Did he openly declare when he entered the country that he had the items or not?

But in fact if he was accompanying the tour he was supposed to be accompanying, Lund would have been entering Israel from Egypt (at least that is what this suggests), or would that be Jordan, where the trippers he was guiding ended up? Both countries which place restrictions on the export of antiquities, and both states party of the 1970 UNESCO Convention (since 1973 and 1974). If he was stopped and questioned about these artefacts when entering the country from Egypt or Jordan and was unable to show at that time (for it seems he was unable to do so on 16th May) that they had been purchased in other countries, then why were they allowed through? How did he manage that?

If Dr Lund had indeed legally and purchased and exported the items suspected of having been dug up in the Holy Land that were seized at the airport "on previous trips around the Mediterranean region", a responsible collector would have the export licences and invoices with which he will now be able to clear his name when faced with such a situation.

When he was searched at Ben Gurion airport, it is reported that Lund had recently-written "che[que]s totaling more than $20,000" on him, and authorities believed these were from "the illegal sales of ancient coins, clay oil lamps, and glass and pottery vessels". Lund denies this, he says "the checks were given to him by members of the tour group who wanted to buy antiquities legally, and he took them to legitimate dealers and paid for the items with his Visa card". This was a tourist group of Mormons or Amish? Do travelling Mormons abroad not carry their own visa cards for some reason? I do not understand this. Really I do not. In any case, again to clear his name all that is needed is for the antiquity dealers in Israel to show the records of those legal transactions. They are obliged to keep such records by Israeli law.

But the Salt Lake Tribune has another - conflicting - story. According to this one, in Bethlehem several tourists:

had run out of cash for souvenirs. He had them write him personal checks in $200 amounts in exchange for extra cash Lund had brought in case such a situation occurred. He also arranged group purchases of Bethlehem baby blankets and Bethlehem alabaster jars with spikenard inside and said he did not make money on the transaction.

Lund does however add that he

also facilitated the $2,000 purchase of a silver Tyre shekel, also known as a Judas coin, for one of the tour participants.

"We were buying antiques as souvenirs from legitimate dealers just like what normal tourists would do and no one ever told us we needed a special visa (sic)", of course if tourists buy antiquities from registered dealers, they get the export licence with the object. What did Lund do, throw them away? I also wonder about the bloke who claims to be writing a book on "Biblical coins of interest to Christians" and who is himself the owner of at least one "binder" of them, who would not tell a tour party member to save his money because he can buy a decent example of that shekel back in the states for about a quarter of the price.

Lund said he's currently gathering affidavits to build a defense case. He's in touch with the U.S. Embassy in Israel, and is seeking legal counsel. Despite the hiccup, Lund said he loves Israel, and now that he understands the laws, he'll try to make it right. "You wont' find a greater advocate for Israel then me and for sustaining the laws of the land," he said. Lund said he's concerned for American tourists in Israel who are in the dark like he was. "Innocently, all over the place, people are buying items, hauling them out of the country and not even aware that they're technically smugglers," he said. "I think Israel has an obligation to let us know that."

Umm, I think they do. How can anyone ignoring cultural property laws, Americans or not, claim to be doing it "innocently"? Ignorance of the law is no excuse. Surely it is also the responsibility of travel companies to employ as guides people who are knowledgeable about local laws that may affect their clients? Dr Lund has at best showed himself woefully ill-informed in this regard.

More about Lund:
Books by Lund include, 'Mesoamerica and the Book of Mormon' and 'The Church and the Negro' ("A discussion of Mormons, Negroes and the priesthood"). On the latter see also: Darth J, "The Church and the Negro" Friday, May 20, 2011, at 07:28 AM here.

Journalists have been confused about who he is, see Rogueclassicist, 'Journalists Just Aren’t Trying Any More', May 19, 2011
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Israel Accuses U.S. Man of Antiquities Trafficking

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Judge Waddoups says looting and disrespectful treatment of archaeological sites, including 'injun' burial sites is OK in Utah, so it need not surprise us that when some Utahans go abroad, they see nothing wrong with supporting destructive local looting and grave robbing. The Israel Antiquities Authority said Tuesday that they had arrested a U.S. tour guide, 'educator' and author from Utah on suspicion of trafficking antiquities stolen from Israel and attempting to smuggle antiques valued at tens of thousands of dollars out of the country. John Lund, is accused of selling stolen artifacts to tour groups he led in Israel, and was detained on Monday night at Israel’s international airport as he was trying to leave the country as a result of a joint Israeli Antiquities Authority and customs operation.

The antiquities authority said in a statement that he had stolen ancient coins in his possession and checks totaling more than $20,000 believed to be from the illegal sales of ancient coins, clay oil lamps, and glass and pottery vessels. Lund was allowed to leave after posting a $7,500 bond meant to guarantee he will return to stand trial, said Shai Bar Tura, deputy director of the authority’s theft prevention unit. Bar Tura said formal charges are expected.

The joint operation began two weeks ago when the Antiquities Authority theft prevention unit inspectors discovered that Lund had been selling ancient artefacts at a lecture he had given in a Jerusalem hotel to tour groups visiting Israel from the US. He was detained, the artefacts were seized, and the authorities searched Lund and his hotel room, where they apparently found and seized hundreds of artefacts which it was suspected had been dug up and stolen from various archaeological sites throughout the country by thieves. At the time it was thought appropriate to let Lund off with a warning. Sadly it seems he acquired a new stock of goods and carried on doing what he had been told not to. Trading antiquities without a licence is illegal in Israel.

As a result of surveillance of a tour group he was leading recently, officials at the Israeli border with Egypt at the Taba crossing in Eilat halted the tourists at the crossing and examined the bags of members and discovered 50 stolen items - alerting them to the fact they were suspected for involvement in illegal trade and export. Among the artefacts found in the tourists' suitcases were ancient silver and bronze coins from the Second Temple period (2,000 years old), ceramic lamps from the Roman and Byzantine period and various glass and ceramic utensils. The tourists said that Lund had sold the items to them. An arrest warrant was issued and Lund was arrested at Ben Gurion Airport where he was trying to leave Israel. When his bags were opened, in his possession officials reportedly found ancient coins and 70 cheques written to him by tourists (70 cheques for $20 000 - that is $260 average each customer). According to a statement by the Authority Lund admitted the offences attributed to him Lund could face up to three years in jail if convicted. He was released and allowed to fly back to the USA on bail of $7500. He is scheduled to be leading more "Funforless" tours in the near future.

The head of the theft prevention unit at the Antiquities Authority Amir Ganor said at the conclusion of the operation that "those who purchase artifacts from unauthorized sources at exorbitant prices are endangering themselves, their money and encouraging artifact theft and robbing the country of its history.

.The source of the coins with description cards should be traceable, the "widow's mite" (I assume it is, they do Pontius Pilat prutahs too) in an olive wood case is a well-known antiqui-geegaw, sold in huge quantities to the gullible collector or believer on the Internet, the source and packaging seems to be Israeli (Moriah, North of Ayalon, Israel 99785)


Dr. Lund [...] is described as having a unique combination of gospel knowledge, deep spirituality, and has a delightful sense of humor. I guess 'thou shalt not deal in stolen goods' simply is not in the book of Mormon. Are we taking bets on whether he goes back to Israel to face the consequences or decides to forfeit the seven and a half thousand from the profits he has made from selling this stuff? Or will he go back and defend himself by showing that its "OK" because the objects were looted outside Israel and he has the receipts to prove it? So how many looted and illegally sold artefacts have entered the US over the years with tourists that went on a tour with Dr Lund? Let us note there were seventy cheques in his bag, but only 50 artefacts recovered this time (not all of the group left Israel through Eilat), and what about previous trips?

Jerusalem - Israel Accuses U.S. Man of Antiquities Trafficking AP - 18th May 2011.
(getting a lot of coverage, "Israel accuses US man of antiquities trafficking" 5700 hits for this article title alone).

Zvi Lavi, 'US professor suspected of selling stolen artifacts', Israel News, 18.05.11

Photo, display by Eilat customs of coins lamps and pots found in Lund's possession.

Four Corners Fiasco: Joseph M. Smith and his Artefact Collection

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From Kimberly Alderman's Cultural Property & Archaeology Law blog:

Federal prosecutors have entered into deals in three more of the Four Corners antiquities trafficking cases. For Meredith Smith, they’ll drop the charges if she doesn’t get charged with any other crimes in the next six months. Tad Kreth had his charges reduced from 17 counts to 1, and the prosecutors will recommend probation. And Joseph Smith has had his charges reduced from 38 counts to 1, and he’ll have to forfeit the Native American artifacts he owns.

Kimberly calls this "The Four Corners Sideshow" and accuses the authorities of "overcharging" the defendants to justify the scale of the operation. She subtitles her blog "A legal resource for archaeology and cultural property enthusiasts", but I am not quite sure what sort of message she intends sending archaeology "enthusiasts" by what she writes. The United States is arguably at the moment one of the largest markets in the world for looted archaeological artefacts. As such, one would expect the cultured people of that nation would be doing something about it, reducing the damaging effects of the actions of the cowboys and dodgy dealers in their midst rather than encouraging them. But instead we can see that they cannot even deal with the destroyers of the archaeological heritage in their own country and many of those talking about the issues over there are lawyers who seem from what they write almost to side with the eroders of history. But then there is big money in collecting, isn't there?

As for the scale of the operation, what is being investigated in cases like this is usually an exceptionally clandestine process. “ARPA investigations can be as complex as murder cases,” Todd Swain said in a 2007 analysis ('Cultural Resource damage on the Public Lands, what the statistics Show' (Yearbook of Cultural Property Law 7). They do need the expenditure of considerable resources, which is what makes it frustrating that cases like this, instead of awakening concern about the ongoing looting of America's archaeological heritage, there is more criticism of the authorities for trying to deal with the problem despite the obvious hindrance the crappy US laws and lack of a centrally coordinated heritage protection system create.

Whether or not anyone was "overcharged" is debatable. I note that Joseph M. Smith , 31, from Blanding mentioned above has (had) an "artefact collection" which presumably federal authorities had reason to believe contains items illicitly obtained (I assume he'll not be losing anything which is properly 'papered' with positive proof of licit provenance). He was initially charged (together with some other people) with a number of counts of selling items which it was alleged were obtained illegally. But that is not his whole collection, and one may presume the transactions mentioned in the charge sheet are only those for which federal authorities (claim to) have documented proof. According to the Salt Lake Tribune article 'A breakdown of the artifact theft charges', they are: "17 felony counts of violating ARPA, eight felony counts of theft of government property, two felony counts of theft of Indian tribal property, one misdemeanor count of theft of Indian tribal property". Smith however admits going onto land and taking artefacts from where he should not have.

Hamilton said his client, Joseph M. Smith, intends to admit in court that he took artifacts from public lands. “But what he is guilty of is a misdemeanor.” [...] “He wasn’t like some of the others that had literally truckloads of artifacts,” Hamilton said. “He was more of a construction worker who walks through the desert.”

The additional charges were dropped because of uncertainty about the financial value of the artefacts concerned.

Then there was Carl Lavern Crites "two felony counts of violating ARPA, two felony counts of theft of government property, one felony count depredation of government property". Crites is a collector and dealer of American Indian items. Overcharged? He had just three objects in his store and collection? Or is every single other item in his store and collection papered showing undeniable licit origin? Another cultural property lawyer with an ambiguous position on this case Derek Fincham points out, there is "no obligation" in US law for them to have so (and he is right of course - US law is woefully deficient in several regards where cultural property issues are concerned). Crites however admitted to taking part in illegal excavation of an ancient (Native American) grave looking for collectable artefacts in September 2008. Was this really the first and only time he'd ever done anything like this, or was it the only occasion where Federal authorities could document it?

Then we have the Redds, James, Jeanne and Jerrica. A sad case as James - who had reportedly been in trouble with the law before over related matters, but not only - decided to commit suicide rather than face the charges. But rather oddly it was his wife that was the cause of the raid on their home in June. She surrendered a collection of over 800 artefacts in 112 boxes (it needed two trucks to take them away). Again was this collection properly papered with collecting histories showing licit origins? Mention is made in the receipt of lots and lots of artefacts, but not a single mention of any files of documentation or collection catalogue cards. She was initially charged on seven or eight counts, her husband only one of them (together with her) and the daughter with three which apparently emerged during examination of whatever evidence there was about how the artefacts in their home were obtained.

But this was apparently not the first time that the artefact collecting activities of the Redd family had brought them into conflict with the authorities ('Couple agree to pay fine for digging up Anasazi site').

In 1996, a San Juan County sheriff's deputy found the Redds and several children digging near prehistoric ruins in Cottonwood Wash near Bluff. Charges were first filed the following year. The charges included desecration of a corpse, a felony. The charge against James Redd, 52, was dismissed. Assistant Utah Attorney General Joanne Slotnik said that was because Jeanne Redd "was the prime mover and the one most interested in these sorts of relics." The state's suit alleged the Redds destroyed a prehistoric grave site listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Jeanne Redd's plea agreement argued that if an ancient grave had been disturbed, it was on private land.

Reportedly "They asserted they had the right to dig at an Anasazi ruin on private land, but a survey later showed the site was on state land" (Joe Bauman, 'Anasazi case is finally put to rest', Deserte news Jan. 26, 2003). They had been threatened by a $250,000 lawsuit brought by the Utah School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration which James and Jeanne Redd apparently settled by making a payment of $10,000 in 2003. Despite this, the Redd family apparently continued to collect artefacts, and the raid on June 10th 2009 and the consequent charges were the results of this. In the case of the acquisition of at least seven of those artefacts federal authorities believed they could document illicit origins, and in the event Jeanne Redd pleaded guilty to all seven. What 'overcharging' was applied here?

Neither do I think it likely that the two dozen people investigated and charged as a result of Operation Cerberus are the only people in the Four Corners area involved in the illegal acquisition of artefacts from the looting of archaeological sites in the region. Judge Waddoups seems to express the idea that since everybody has been doing it, it would be invidious to give those actually caught doing it sentences as severe as the law lays down. But these people all know that in doing what they do they are breaking the law (I expect they themselves would add "technically"). This looting of protected sites is clearly a huge problem and - despite the existence of laws ostensibly to protect the US archaeological resource - the US judicial system now seems to be giving a signal that the US administration actually intends to do nothing much about it. They are just giving offenders a slap on the wrist, and an admonition 'not to do it again'. That's what, for example, the Redds got in 2003, but six years later and apparently eight hundred dugup artefacts later, that is what they seem to have been found to have been doing.

Vignette: Anasazi bowl, Chaco Canyon - this one not looted.

More Guilty Pleas in Four Corners Looting Case

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Three Utah residents have pleaded guilty in a federal court on Friday to trafficking stolen artifacts from federal and tribal lands in southern Utah. Reece Laws, Tad Kreth and Joseph Smith, Blanding residents, pleaded guilty, "taking American Indian artifacts from public lands". The mere formality of sentencing is set for July 18.

"A federal prosecutor says an indictment for a fourth defendant, Meredith Smith, will be dismissed if she doesn't commit any crimes for next six months".

Chi-Chi Zhang, 'Several Utahns plead guilty to American Indian artifact looting' Associated Press, April 29, 2011

Back in July last year (San Juan Record - 'Antiquities cases work way through court system '): "To date, there have been no trials related to the charges, but several are planned. An October trial date has been set for Blanding residents Joseph M. Smith, Meredith Smith, Tad Kreth, Reece Laws and Brandon Laws before Judge Stewart".

These cases had a bit of a 'twist' in them in that for some months there was some wrangling about the value of the objects involved and whether or not Arizona antiquity dealer Dace Hyatt could testify for the defence in the case (the prosecution argued he could not be a court expert as he had no archaeological training, and had earlier been quoted in newspapers calling the Operation Cerberus 'entrapment'), the court decided he could testify (Artifacts Dealer is an 'Expert' Says Federal Judge). The defence of the accused argued that establishment of the monetary value of the items concerned was important because there is a minimum value in federal law for felony charges. Loss of archaeological value of course cannot be measured.