Prokopi Arrested after Claim to Dinosaur Bones Prompts Criminal Investigation

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) today arrested Eric Prokopi at his Gainesville, Florida home, where authorities also searched his house.  Prokopi is a self-described "commercial paleontologist" seeking ownership of an assembled Tyranosaurus Bataar skeleton detained in New York.  Prokopi's lawyers and an auction catalog have called the dinosaur skeleton a "Display Piece."  But federal officials have concluded that the bones are stolen and smuggled.

Tyrannosaurus Bataar, courtesy U.S. Homeland Security

The investigation and arrest of Prokopi is an outgrowth of the civil forfeiture case of United States v. One Tyrannosaurus Bataar Skeleton. The criminal complaint, first sealed by the federal district court in Manhattan on October 5 and unsealed today, alleges that Prokopi violated 18 USC 371, 545, 2315.  The three counts against Porkopi charge that he committed the crimes of conspiracy, false classification of goods, and receipt of stolen property.  HSI Special Agent Daniel Brazier headed the investigation, and Attorney Martin Bell of the Complex Frauds Unit in the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York is prosecuting the case.

A person who has been charged with a crime is presumed innocent.  The prosecution must prove the elements of each offense beyond a reasonable doubt before a criminal defendant may be found guilty.  The current complaint alleges criminal counts based on the lower standard of probable cause.

Count One charges Prokopi with conspiracy to commit crimes of smuggling, false statements, and receiving and disposing stolen goods valued at $5,000 or more under 18 USC 545, 1001 and 2315.  It is alleged that between March 2012 and June 2012 Prokopi "sent price lists to vendors regarding the potential sale of a stolen Tyrannosaurus bataar skeleton in his possession;" that in April 2012 Prokopi "directed another individual to make misstatements on customs forms ultimately submitted to United States Customs and Border Protection concerning the transport of a Microraptor fossil;" and that in December 2011 he "attempted to sell the fossilized remains of an Oviraptor Mongoliensis to another individual."

Count Two alleges that between  January 2012 and May 2012 Prokopi, with intent to defraud, "caused the mislabeling of customs forms relating to the fossilized remains of a Tyrannosaurus bataar skeleton, allowing the skeleton to enter into the United States."

Count Three charges that Prokopi, sometime between January 2012 and May 2012, "sold a Tyrannosaurus bataar skeleton to a buyer in Manhattan, knowing the same to have been stolen from Mongolia."

The government asserts that "that there is probable cause to believe that Eric Prokopi, the defendant, has engaged in a scheme to unlawfully import the fossilized remains of numerous dinosaurs into the United States."  Authorities describe how he "owns a business in Florida called 'Everything Earth' and has also owned a business known as 'Florida Fossils.' Among other things, Prokopi has bought and sold whole and partial dinosaur skeletons."  The case investigator reports that he has "reviewed numerous customs forms dating back to 2007 in which Eric Prokopi, the defendant, accepts shipments on behalf of his business," reporting that "between 2010 and 2012, Eric Prokopi, the defendant, procured dinosaur fossils in Mongolia and unlawfully transported them to the United States, in violation of Mongolian law and with the knowledge that they were stolen. He then sold or attempted to sell them to other individuals. Prokopi also bought dinosaur fossils from individuals in other countries and, in importing the fossils, caused misrepresentations to be made to United States Customs."

The listed dinosaur bones alleged to have been "unlawfully procured, transported, sold and/or negotiated by Prokipi" include:

"a. A Tyrannosaurus bataar skeleton stolen from Mongolia and sold at auction in Manhattan in or around May 2012 for $1,052,500.

"b. A Saurolophus angustirostris skeleton stolen from Mongolia and sold to the I.M. Chait auctionhouse (sic) in or around May 2012 for approximately $75,000.

"c. A Microraptor skeleton purchased from an individual in China and unlawfully brought into the United States by Prokopi in 2010.

"d. Gallimimus and Oviraptor whole or partial skeletons as well as Tyrannosaurus bataar parts."

The federal complaint against Prokopi relies on experts to frame its case. The paleontology experts describe where specific dinosaur fossils are located, namely in Mongolia.  Meanwhile, legal experts describe the force of Mongolian cultural patrimony law.  It is concluded that "Mongolian law dating back nearly nine decades establishes that fossils discovered or excavated in Mongolia are the property of Mongolia and there has been no legal mechanism to export them since that time, absent an official decree from the Mongolian government."  Both the factual and legal assertions are sure to be challenged by defense lawyers in the coming months just as they have been challenged in the civil forfeiture case.  Already a federal district court judge raised doubts about the prosecution's civil forfeiture case, but that was before the prosecution filed a new civil complaint in September and before today's arrest.

HSI cites several pieces of information in support of its arrest of Prokopi regarding the Tyrannosaurus Bataar, many of which have already been mentioned in the civil forfeiture case (see October 10, 2012 post). The government points to additional emails, among them an email dated May 24, 2012 reportedly from Prokopi to a person at Heritage Auctions, Inc., which states, "Although I am sure that everything with this [Bataar] specimen is legal as far back as I can tell, I do know just about all of the people involved in the business of central asian fossils, and could offer ideas and help to make permanent changes that would nearly eliminate the black market and benefit all sides. If the [M]ongolian president is indeed only interested in getting to the bottom of the sources, and wants to look good for his people, I think I can help him do that if he is willing to cooperate and compromise. If he only wants to take the skeleton and try to put an end to the black market, he will have a fight and will only drive the black market deeper underground."

The government adds that it has pictures of Prokopi in the Mongolian desert in 2009.  "I have learned that Mongolian officials have located and interviewed a Mongolian citizen ("Witness-1").  Witness l stated that in or around 2009, he accompanied Eric Prokopi, the defendant, to an excavation site, and witnessed Prokopi taking physically taking (sic) bones out of the ground. ... I have viewed the pictures taken by Witness-1. ... [A]n individual who appears to be Prokopi is standing with others in what appears to be the desert. In one picture, he is holding a clipboard and looking at the ground."

HSI writes in its complaint "that that there is probable cause to believe that Eric Prokopi, the defendant, brought a stolen Saurolophus angustirostris (the "Hadro") skeleton into the United States and sold it to an auction house," specifically I. M. Chait Gallery/Auctioneers.  It is reported that an April 4, 2012 email from Prokopi to the Chait Gallery discusses a Hadro refers to the "[N]emegt formation, Mongolia," where this dinosaur is alleged by experts to be found.

HSI further alleges criminal dealings with an imported Microraptor from China. The government cites emails in its complaint, writing:

"a. Prokopi exchanged e-mails with an individual ('Individual-5') concerning a shipment in April 2010. On April 19, 2010, Individual-5 e-mailed Prokopi complaining that he had received $9,988 instead of $10,000 and asking whether his commission had been lost. Individual-5 also sent  Prokopi a UPS tracking number. That tracking number matches the tracking number in DHS's records of the Microraptor shipment.

"b. On April 21, 2010, Prokopi e-mailed Individual-5, stating that he had received a message from UPS saying that the customer needed to provide an accurate description and value. Prokopi wrote, 'What did you write on the shipment? I need to know what to tell them.' Individual-5 stated that he had written that he was sending a 'sample of craft rock' and that had listed $30 as the value.

"c. On April 26, 2010, Individual-5 e-mailed Prokopi and stated that he had spoken to UPS, which had asked for more detail with respect to the shipment's name and detail. Individual-5 wrote, 'Call and say 'replica, made by rocks, used for study, $200 for value' or something else, if better.'

"d. On April 29, 2010, Individual-5 and Prokopi both wrote that they were concerned that the shipment had been held up. 'I am worried that they will take the item because you declared the value much too low,' Prokopi wrote. 'There is no reason to do that, because there is no tax on fossils.'

"e. Individual-5 later asked, 'Do you want me to hold the other 8 ones for you?'

"f. Individual-5 later wrote, 'I will send this to you. So please tell me how much I can declare the value.'

g. Prokopi responded that Individual-5 should state, 'Geological specimen for collection. Value $1000.'

h. Individual-5 later wrote, within the same mail thread, 'Selling fossils like this is not allowed in China.'"

Regarding other dinosaur fossils, the complaint quotes a July 28, 2010 email purportedly from Prokopi to a trader explaining, "They didn't ask for a specific amount, just told me the more I can send the more they can buy from the diggers. He said they are finding gallimimus skeletons, a couple of tarbo skulls, and a lot of the usual protos, oviraptors, etc."

UPDATE 10/20/12: Federal attorneys in the  case of  United States v. One Tyrannosaurus Bataar Skeleton filed a memorandum of law in opposition to Eric Prokopi's motion to dismiss the forfeiture case. The government's claims are familiar ones made recently, but allegations of Prokopi's criminal conduct are more forceful following his October 17, 2012 arrest.  The pleading may be found here.


This post is researched, written, and published on the blog Cultural Heritage Lawyer Rick St. Hilaire at culturalheritagelawyer.blogspot.com. Text copyrighted 2012 by Ricardo A. St. Hilaire, Attorney & Counselor at Law, PLLC. Any unauthorized reproduction or retransmission of this post is prohibited. CONTACT: www.culturalheritagelawyer.com

Bataar Forfeiture Case Intensifies as Motion to Dismiss is Filed and a Second Dinosaur is Seized

Attorneys representing “commercial paleontologist” Eric Prokopi filed a motion to dismiss last Friday in the case of United States v. One Tyrannosaurus Bataar Skeleton.  The United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York seeks to forfeit and return the Bataar skeleton to Mongolia after having prevented its sale at auction this past spring.  Prokopi asserts that he labored to assemble the bones and that the skeleton is not stolen, but rightfully his.  Meanwhile, a seizure warrant has been issued for another dinosaur skeleton.

The federal district court in Manhattan recently raised doubts about the government's forfeiture claim, but allowed government prosecutors to file a new verified complaint.  In its new claim, filed on September 21, 2012, the government asserts several points in support of its forfeiture action.

First, experts conclude that the dinosaur bones came from the Nemegt Formation within the Gobi Desert in Mongolia.  The government's attorneys say that is because "[f]ossilized dinosaur bones found with the Nemegt Formation have a distinctive color to them as a result of the soil composition of Nemegt Formation."

Next, they argue that Mongolian law asserts ownership over cultural heritage, including the dinosaur bones.  “Since as early as 1924, when Mongolia became an independent nation, the Government of Mongolia has prohibited the personal or non-state ownership of items of cultural significance, such dinosaur remains, such as the Defendant Property.”  The country’s constitution, domestic cultural property protection laws, criminal laws, and a supreme court decree are all cited as bases for arguing that the dinosaur bones were owned by and protected by Mongolia.

Prosecutors further allege that importation documents were clouded.  “According to the CBP [U.S. Customs and Border Protection] Entry Form, the Defendant Property [dinosaur] was imported from Great Britain to Gainesville, Florida on or about March 27, 2010.  Florida Fossils is listed on the Customs Entry Form as the ultimate consignee. At the time, Florida Fossils was owned by Prokopi. The CBF Entry Form for the  Defendant Property contains several misstatements.      First, the country of origin for the Defendant Property is erroneously listed as Great Britain rather than Mongolia. Second, the Defendant Property is substantially undervalued. … Third, the Defendant Property is incorrectly described ….”

Additionally, prosecutors claim irregular importation information surrounding the dinosaur skeleton.  For example, prosecutors write that it was revealed at a meeting between prosecutors and counsel for the claimant that the dinosaur bones purportedly came to the United States in three shipments, not one.  At the July 26, 2012 meeting “[c]ounsel for Prokopi claimed that the Defendant Property was transported into the United States in three separate shipments and not just a single shipment as alleged in the Verified Complaint.” (Emphasis in the original).  Meanwhile, a letter from Prokopi’s counsel revealed more information: "the March 2010 import shipment … included only a small portion of the Tyrannosaurus bataar display piece … the March 2010 shipment included the head [of the Defendant Property which] was incorporated into the" dinosaur.  "Mr. Prokopi imported two other shipments of various fossils on March 22, 2007 and August 29, 2007, and to the best of his recollection part of one or both of these shipments was incorporated into the" Defendant Property” added the letter from claimant’s counsel.

Irregular importation information is specifically alleged with regard to the March 2007 shipment.  Attorneys for the government state:

“The importation paperwork for the March 22, 2007 shipment lists the items being imported as "fossil specimens" with a declared value of $12,000. On the CBP Entry Form for this shipment, the Country of Origin is listed as Japan.

“In the documents provided by Prokopi's counsel, the UPS Air Waybill for the March 22, 2007 shipment, states that the Country of Origin for the shipment is Mongolia. However, included in the Prokopi Importation Documents is an ‘Additional Information’ form which states that on March 29, 2007 UPS obtained information from Prokopi that the country of origin for the March 22, 2007 shipment is Japan.

“According to CBP records for the March 22, 2007 shipment, the country of origin on the Commercial Invoice submitted to CBP was changed from Mongolia to Japan. Specifically, the Commercial Invoice has a handwritten notation stating ‘IOR is Correct per Eric Prokopi XXX-XXX-XXXX c/o per above.’”

Government lawyers make similar specificed claims with regard to the August 2007 import.  “The importation paperwork for the August 29, 2007 shipment listed the items being imported as "fossils" with a declaredvalue of $42,000. On the CBP Entry Formfor this shipment, the Country of Origin is listed as Japan,” the prosecutors write.

The government reasons that “[r]egardless whether the Defendant Property came from one or more shipments the importation documents provided by Prokopi contain material misrepresentations.”

Government lawyers add that the claimant’s lawyers at a September 5, 2012 court conference “advised the Court that the Defendant Propertywas comprised of fossilized materialfrom four international shipmentsas well as material purchased domestically.           However,the specifics of those shipments were not disclosedexcept that it was believedsome of the international shipmentscame from Japan.” (Emphasis in the original.)

1911 Saurolophous excavation.  Source: Barnum Brown

The prosecutors then mention other dinosaur skeletons associated with Prokopi.  They describe a Saurolophus skeleton purchased by a gallery in California from Prokopi.  The skeleton failed to sell at auction.  The bones were transported to California on April 24, 2012 and described by Prokopi in an email as having come from Mongolia, says the government lawyers.  The southern district of New York issued a seizure warrant for one Saurolophus Angustirostris Skeleton on September 20, 2012, according to the government's lawyers.  That action came two years after U.S. Homeland Security administratively seized a Microraptor or Fossil Reptile Skeleton in Matrix from Prokopi because of misstatements made on import forms say the prosecutors.  The lawyers write that “rather than beingdescribed as ‘Microraptor’ or ‘Fossil ReptileSkeleton in Matrix’the Microraptor was initially described as ‘sample of craft rock’ on the invoice but then at some point a pen and ink change (the ‘Pen and Ink Change’)was made to the description on said invoiceso that it read that the Fossilwas a ‘fossil replica.’  Accordingto UPS records, The Pen and Ink Change wasmade on April 21, 2010 and made because ‘EricProkopi called andsaid contents were a replicafossil mounted in rock with a value of $100.00 USD.’”

Finally, prosecutors say that the "Mongolian Government has advised that Prokopi visited Mongolian in 2008, 2009, 2011 and most recently in 2012, after the filing of the instant forfeiture action.Specifically, the Mongolian Government has advised the United States that it has located a witness in Mongolia who states that during Prokopi's 2009 visit he witnessed Prokopi remove fossil bones from the ground in the Gobi Desertin Mongolia, specifically in the Nemegt Formation.”

Prokopi’s lawyers fired back in their October 5, 2012 motion to dismiss by arguing that the government has a high burden to prove forfeiture.  Moreover, it called the forfeiture action “unprecedented.”  “Fossil collecting is well established, and has been intertwined with paleontology for generations. At least since the fall of Communism, fossils from China, Kazakhstan, Mongolia and Russia have been openly sold on the international market, and have been avidly collected in the United States by both individuals and museums. Yet, as the Government would now have it, all dinosaur fossils of presumed Mongolian origin are stolen property and should be returned to that country,” the lawyers write.

They call into question the viability of the government’s new complaint before the court, writing:

“In particular, the Amended Complaint does not contest: (1) that the Government has failed to publish regulations related to the proper valuation and country of origin of cultural property despite Congressional direction to do so; (2) that neither the U.S. nor Mongolian Governments have published Mongolian laws in English translations so they can be understood by American collectors, dealers and museums; and (3) that there is no evidence that Mongolia itself actually takes active steps to preclude its own citizens from owning fossils. Under the circumstances, the Court should not countenance the Government’s efforts to announce a new policy on the import of fossils through a forfeiture proceeding based primarily upon technical violations of “country of origin” and valuation rules where no such rules have been published and upon foreign laws that are largely unavailable to American citizens and are unclear in both their meaning and application. Instead, Claimant Prokopi’s Motion to Dismiss should be granted, not only to ensure that the fruits of his labor are rightly returned to him but to encourage the Government to regulate fossil collecting–if at all–prospectively through the legislative and regulatory process rather than retroactively through this unprecedented forfeiture action.”

Prokopi’s lawyers criticize the government by saying that “the Government has ‘doubled down’ on its prior claims that the [Tyrannosaurus Bataar] Display Piece ‘could only have come from Mongolia,’ that the Mongolian state owns all fossils that exist within its borders, and that the Display Piece is comprised largely of one specimen. The Government then presents unrelated, incomplete and unverified information concerning other fossils and importations, as well as Prokopi’s travels to Mongolia, in an attempt to utilize innuendo to circumvent the stringent pleading requirements of the rules applicable to forfeiture actions.”

The lawyers complain, “Nowhere does the Government allege that the Government has published country of origin and valuation rules for fossils. Nowhere does the Government allege that Mongolian law has been translated and made available to American collectors, dealers and museums. Nowhere does the Government allege during the relevant period cited in the Amended Complaint that Mongolia enforced its own law at home such that Mongolian citizens are actively precluded from owning, purchasing, selling and exporting fossils, thus confirming any claim by the Mongolian Government that it was the sole owner of all fossils. These deficiencies in the Amended Complaint are fatal to the Government’s claims.”

Prokopi’s lawyers vigorously argue that the Bataar Skeleton was not stolen, particularly where Mongolain law is ambiguous and unenforced.  Moreover, they say that the government is unable to present facts to show that the dinosaur bones were actually in Mongolia, that they were taken without the Mongolian government’s permission, or that Prokopi knew that the component parts of the dinosaur bones were stolen.

 

This post is researched, written, and published on the blog Cultural Heritage Lawyer Rick St. Hilaire at culturalheritagelawyer.blogspot.com. Text copyrighted 2012 by Ricardo A. St. Hilaire, Attorney & Counselor at Law, PLLC. Any unauthorized reproduction or retransmission of this post is prohibited. CONTACT: www.culturalheritagelawyer.com

Dinosaur Claimant Files Motion to Dismiss in New York Federal Court

Attorneys for Eric Prokopi on Friday filed a motion to dismiss in federal district court in the southern district of New York. The lawyers argue in the case of United States of America v. One Tyrannosaurus Bataar Skeleton that the government cannot seize and forfeit an dinosaur skeleton on both policy and legal grounds. Prokopi is the claimant seeking the return of the Tyrannosaur skeleton, which he assembled.  It was seized by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on June 22, 2012.

Courtesy ICE

The matter came to the attention of law enforcement officials after chairman and curator of paleontology at the American Museum of Natural History in New York raised concerns about the piece advertised for sale at an auction. The auction site listed the object as "SUPERB TYRANNOSAURUS SKELETON, Tyrannosaurus bataar, Late Cretaceous, Central Asia." U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara in Manhattan filed a forfeiture action alleging that the import paperwork for the dinosaur bones misstated the country of origin as Great Britain, not Mongolia; undervalued the skeleton at $15,000; and improperly described the bones as fossil reptile heads, a fossil lizard, and other incorrect items. See the June 26, 2012 blog post for additional background.

In their 28 page legal memorandum urging dismissal of the case, the claimant's lawyers set the stage for their argument to the court:

"Eric Prokopi purchased several groups of fossils on the open market and spent a year of his life and considerable expense identifying and compiling component parts of, and then restoring and mounting, the Tyrannosaurus bataar fossil (the “Display Piece”) so that it could be sold at auction. Prokopi thought he had recouped his considerable investment . . . when the Display Piece sold for $1.05 million at Heritage Auctions (“Heritage”) in New York. But then, a media campaign stirred up by academic paleontologists prompted Mongolia’s President to demand that the Display Piece be sent to Mongolia because it 'must have been stolen from there.' Prokopi and Heritage had entered into negotiations with Mongolia’s President in order to settle the dispute, when on June 18, 2012, the United States filed a Civil Forfeiture Complaint in rem (“Complaint”) seeking forfeiture of the Display Piece." (footnotes omitted)

The claimant's August 17, 2012 memorandum of law argues that the government should not set policy regulating dinosaur bones through the courts. The claimant's advocates write that the "Motion to Dismiss should be granted, not only to ensure that the fruits of his labor are rightly returned to him but to encourage the Government to regulate fossil collecting – if at all  – prospectively through the legislative and regulatory process rather than retroactively through this unprecedented forfeiture action."

Additionally, the lawyers contend that Prokopi did not commit any violations of federal import regulations because he did not have notice of U.S. rules regarding how to list the country of origin or value a paleontological object. "Here, Prokopi could have no fair notice of the 'country of origin' or valuation rules for fossils because none exist," the attorneys submit.  They maintain that in "May of 2006, CBP issued a revised Informed Compliance Publication which included guidance on the proper tariff classification of fossils, but failed to issue guidance on how to determine the country of origin or value of fossils or even of archaeological objects. . . . Since no regulatory guidance exists on how to apply this definition, there is no way for an importer of fossils to know how to proceed."

[Sidebar: Where a cultural property importer has a question about the proper tariff classification, country of origin, or even valuation it can be good practice to file a request for a binding U.S. Customs ruling pursuant to 19 C.F.R. 177.  A rulings letter can provide an official interpretation of the law regarding a specific object to be imported.  See the U.S. Customs web site discussing rulings letters.  See also the CROSS database of rulings letters, which which can also help importers of cultural property comply with applicable regulations.]

The claimant's legal counsel further argue that Prokopi did not have fair notice of Mongolian law "because they are not readily available to the general public much less to attorneys who practice in the 'cultural property' field."  Even if he had knowledge of Mongolian law, the lawyers declare that the dinosaur skeleton could not be considered stolen because current Mongolian law does not clearly define fossils to be owned by Mongolia.  The country, moreover, does not enforce its title vesting law, they aver.  In any case, the claimant's attorneys assert that there is no evidence to support that the bones came from Mongolia or were removed from that country without authority. The attorneys argue that the government cannot show that Prokopi knew the Tyrannosaur bones were stolen.

The claimant's lawyers end their memorandum with the following conclusion:

"It may or may not be time to regulate fossil collecting like antiquities collecting, but surely any such regulatory effort should only be accomplished prospectively through the legislative or administrative process rather than retroactively through a forfeiture action prompted by a media frenzy and foreign politics. The Government should not be allowed to seize property based upon obscure foreign laws or unwritten interpretations of 'country of origin' or valuation rules for fossils. Moreover, the Government has not alleged sufficient facts to establish a reasonable basis to believe that it could meet its burden to prove that the Display Piece was 'stolen.'

The claimant seeks to dismiss the government's forfeiture complaint pursuant to the Supplemental Rule for Admiralty or Maritime Claims and Asset Forfeiture Actions G(8)(b)(i) and Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6).

This post is researched, written, and published on the blog Cultural Heritage Lawyer Rick St. Hilaire at http://culturalheritagelawyer.blogspot.com. Text copyrighted 2012 by Ricardo A. St. Hilaire, Attorney & Counselor at Law, PLLC. CONTACT: www.culturalheritagelawyer.com

Dinosaur Forfeiture Case Rescheduled as Court Waits for Claimant's Verified Claim

HSI seizes the dinosaur bones.

Today's court conference in the matter of United States of America v. One Tyrannosaurus Bataar Skeleton (2012-cv-04760) was rescheduled to September 5 after federal prosecutors issued a gentle reminder that the government remained the sole party in the case.  In a letter submitted to the southern district court of New York, prosecutors wrote:

"This is a forfeiture matter and at the present time the only party to the action is the Government. In order for an individual or entity to become a party to the action, they are required to file a Verified Claim.  As of the date [of] this letter there have been no Verified Claims filed with the Court and the time period for filing has not yet expired. The time period to file a Verified Claim expires on August 26, 2012."

Ancient coin dealer advocates and attorneys Michael McCullough and Peter Tompa filed court appearances in June announcing their representation of Eric Prokopi, the purported claimant seeking the dinosaur bones' return.   They are expected to file a Verified Claim arguing why the dinosaur bones should be awarded to Prokopi.

The U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York filed a forfeiture complaint this spring alleging that the dinosaur skeleton was illegally imported into this country in March 2012.  Federal prosecutors seek to repatriate the bones to Mongolia, the country of origin.

More details regarding this seizure and forfeiture case may be found here.

CONTACT: www.culturalheritagelawyer.com

Dinosaur Forfeiture Complaint Now Published in New York Court as Coin Dealer Lawyers File Appearance to Free Arrested Mongolian Tyrannosaurus

Today the federal district court in the southern district of New York electronically published the federal government's forfeiture complaint against a dinosaur skeleton.  And an ancient coin dealers' attorney and lobbyist has filed an appearance as co-counsel on behalf of a claimant who wants the bones back.

Cultural property watchers are aware of the dinosaur's seizure last week when the federal government took legal action against a Tyrannosaurus bataar skeleton offered for sale at auction. The U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York filed a forfeiture complaint explaining that the dinosaur bones were illegally imported into this country on March 27, 2012 from Great Britain.  Federal prosecutors allege criminal wrongdoing in their complaint, writing in part:

Source: ICE

"The Customs Importation documents for the Defendant Property [Tyrannosaurus bataar] contain several misstatements. First, the country of origin for the Defendant Property was erroneously listed on the Customs Entry Form as Great Britain rather than Mongolia. Second, the Defendant Property was substantially undervalued in the Customs Importation documents. The importation documents list the value of the Defendant Property as $15,000 contrary to the $950,000 - $1,500,00 value listed in the Heritage Auctions May 20, 2012 Natural History Auction catalog and the actual auction sale price of $1,052,500. Third, the Defendant Property was incorrectly described in the Customs Importation documents as '2 large rough (unprepared) fossil reptile heads;' '6 boxes of broken fossil bones;' '3 rough (unprepared) fossil reptiles;' '1 fossil lizard;' '3 rough (unprepared) fossil reptiles;' and '1 fossil reptile skull.'

Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) assisted with the case. "As alleged, criminal smugglers misrepresented this fossil to customs officials when they illegally imported it into the United States," commented ICE Director John Morton in a press statement.  While authorities allege specific unlawful acts surrounding the Tyrannosaurus bataar's import, federal officials have thus far only arrested the dinosaur bones.

The U.S. Attorney's stated goal is to seize and forfeit the Tyrannosaurus bataar for repatriation to Mongolia.  Court records do not indicate that law enforcement sought a search warrant to seize the dinosaur for potential evidence as part of a criminal investigation.

The government's complaint lists "commercial paleontologist" Eric Prokopi as the consignor of the dinosaur bones.  Washington, DC based attorney Peter Tompa, who litigates and lobbies on behalf of the Ancient Coin Collectors Guild (ACCG), filed a court appearance today announcing his representation of Prokopi.  Tompa is co-counsel along with Brooklyn cultural property lawyer and ancient coin dealer advocate, Michael McCullough.  McCullough's LinkedIn profile lists him as past associate counsel at Sotheby's.  Experienced cultural property forfeiture prosecutor Sharon Cohen Levin is lead attorney for the government.

CONTACT: http://www.culturalheritagelawyer.com/
(c) Ricardo A. St. Hilaire, Attorney & Counselor at Law, PLLC