Indictments in alleged looting of ancient Four Corners burial sites - Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal:

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The on Wednesday released details of 12 indictments related to 23 Law enforcement officials have startexd arresting those named inthe indictments, most of whom live in according to the Interior Department. The indictments were handede down by a Salt Lake Citygrandd jury. Roughly 250 artifacts estimated to be worth morethan $335,000o allegedly were stolen by the ring, accordinyg to the Interior Department. The artifactse include Anasazi pottery, created by Native Americans centuries ago, as well as ceremoniap masks and abuffalo headdress.
An undercover investigatiob intothe ring’s activities has been goingt on for two years, and included agenta from the Interior Department’d (BLM) and FBI as well as U.S. marshals. “Letg this case serve notice to anyonwe who is considering breakin these laws and tramplingour nation’s culturapl heritage that the BLM, the Departmenr of Justice and the [rest of] the federalk government will track you down and bring you to justice,” Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said in a The federal Archaeological Resources Protection Act makes it illegal to excavate archaeologicao sites without authorization, and take artifacts from federal land for sale or Once the artifacts’ tribal affiliations have been they will be returned to those tribes, as requireed by the Native American Gravesd Protection and Repatriation Act.
Items not covered by the triba l repatriation law will be made availabls for scientific research andpublic education. The Four Cornerss region includes partsof Utah, New Mexico and Arizona, and occupies Native Americah land. Colorado’s corner is part of this state’z Ute Mountain Ute reservation, and the otheer states’ corners are part of the Navajop Nation. Indicted defendants were to appeat beforea U.S.
magistrate in Moab, Utah, on