bad to the bone.
Four people have been accused of stealing $1 million worth of dinosaur bones from public land in Utah and selling and shipping the prehistoric find to China, the DOJ revealed Thursday.
Vint Wade, 65, Donna Wade, 67, of Utah, Steven Willing, 67, of Los Angeles and Jordan Willing, 40, of Oregon were arrested and charged with 13 felony counts for allegedly dealing in 150,000 pounds of stolen paleontological resources, including dinosaur bones from March 2018 and until “at least” March 2023, court documents show.
During that time, Wades allegedly hoarded paleontological resources to sell at gem and mineral shows around the US while selling some of the finds to Willings who “exported dinosaur bones to China by mislabeling the dinosaur bones and deflating their value to avoid them.” detection by federal agents.”
The indictment alleges the accused conspired to buy dinosaur bones from two unnamed and unindicted conspirators, who illegally excavated and removed them from public land for profit.
Charges for all defendants also include conspiracy against the United States and violation of the Paleontological Resources Conservation Act. Utah Attorney General’s Office
“By extracting and processing these dinosaur bones to make consumer products for profit, tens of thousands of pounds of dinosaur bones have lost almost all scientific value, leaving future generations unable to experience the science and wonder of these bones on Federal soil,” said US Attorney Trina A. Higgins.
The defendants allegedly caused more than $3 million in damages that included the scientific value of the resource, the commercial value of the resource and the cost of restoration and repair.
The indictment alleges that Wades purchased the dinosaur bones from an unindicted conspirator who removed them from federal land.
The Wades allegedly hoarded paleontological resources to sell at gem and mineral shows around the US Attorney’s Office.Utah
They then stockpiled the bones for resale to national vendors at gem and mineral shows, according to the indictment.
Prosecutors showed photo evidence of bone fragments and jewelry labeled “gem bones” that appeared to be made from cut and polished dinosaur bones sold at gem and mineral shows.
The sale included $1 million worth of bones bought by Willings, who used a Jordanian company, Blue Marble — an education supply company — to export them to China, mislabel them and understate their value to avoid a US export ban, according to the indictment. .
The indictment states the four “knew or should have known that these paleontological resources were excavated, extracted, sold, purchased, exchanged, transported, and received from Federal lands.”
Photo evidence reportedly shows bone fragments and jewelry labeled “gem bones” that appear to be made from cut and polished dinosaur bones sold at gem and mineral shows. Utah Attorney General’s Office
“The United States Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners are dedicated to protecting paleontological resources throughout the State of Utah. We will hold accountable anyone who wants to engage in similar criminal conduct,” said Higgins.
The Bureau of Land Management and the FBI are investigating the case with assistance from the Grand County Sheriff and the San Juan County Sheriff’s Office.
“The Bureau of Land Management should be commended for uncovering the illegal trade in paleontological artifacts here in our community,” said Grand County Sheriff Jamison Wiggins.
All defendants are reportedly charged with several crimes, including conspiracy against the United States, violation of the Paleontological Resources Conservation Act (PRPA), theft of United States property, and other charges alleged in the indictment.
Paleontological resource means any fossil remains, traces or traces of organisms, preserved in or on the earth’s crust, which have paleontological significance and provide information about the history of life on Earth, according to the Paleontological Resources Conservation Act.
The defendant appeared at an initial court appearance Thursday in Salt Lake City.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
