24 people arrested in theft of archaeological artifacts from Four Corners area

October 11th, 2009 Prison time, felony charges rare for relic lootersSALT LAKE CITY — Stepping into the afternoon sun last month, Jeanne Redd and her daughter Jericca walked away from a federal courthouse with probation papers — not prison time — for their role in the theft and illegal trafficking of Indian artifacts. Some, including one of the Salt Lake City's daily newspapers, expressed frustration that the judge didn't come down harder on the duo from southern Utah.

September 13th, 2009 Determining fate of looted relics could take yearsSALT LAKE CITY — Once the legal dust settles from the nation's biggest bust of Southwestern artifact looting, federal officials face another daunting task: deciding what to do with the ancient sandals, pipes, pendants and thousands of other items associated with the investigation. It could take years to sort through the ancient Native American relics — seven truckloads have been collected already this summer — and determine where each should go, said Emily Palus, the U.S.

September 1st, 2009 Check casher for ID theft ring arrested in MiamiMIAMI — A woman accused of being the check casher for an identity theft ring that targeted the wife of Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is awaiting a court hearing in Miami. Shonya Michelle Young, of Myrtle Beach, S.C., is expected to appear in federal court Tuesday afternoon.

August 19th, 2009 Feds gather vast collection of artifacts dealerSALT LAKE CITY — A major Southwest dealer is surrendering a vast personal collection of ancient artifacts in another break in the federal investigation of looting and grave robbing in the Four Corners region. More than 20 government agents, archaeologists and curators descended early Wednesday on a home in Durango, Colo., to haul away a lifetime collection from 74-year-old Carl "Vern" Crites and his wife.

July 6th, 2009 Mother, daughter plead guilty in artifacts caseSALT LAKE CITY — A mother and daughter pleaded guilty Monday to several felony charges stemming from a sweeping federal investigation into the theft and illegal trafficking of American Indian artifacts. Jeanne (JEAN'-nee) Redd, 59, pleaded guilty to seven federal counts of theft of government property, theft of tribal property and trafficking in stolen artifacts.

July 1st, 2009 10 arrested in oil, gas thefts at Texas companiesODESSA, Texas — Ten people have been arrested in the theft of about $2 million worth of oil and gas condensate from oil companies and producers in West Texas. The arrests Tuesday came following a seven-month investigation by a regional oil theft task force.

June 20th, 2009 FBI: 2nd defendant in artifacts case found deadSALT LAKE CITY — A second defendant indicted following an investigation into the theft and illegal trafficking of American Indian artifacts from the Four Corners area has been found dead in an apparent suicide, the FBI said Friday. Steven L. Shrader, 56, of Santa Fe, N.M., was found dead in Shabbona, Ill., on Friday, the same day he was scheduled to appear in federal court in Salt Lake City.

June 18th, 2009 Feds face criticism over arrests in artifacts caseSALT LAKE CITY — The sun was barely up when federal agents began surrounding a dozen homes scattered across rural southern Utah, the final stroke of a two-year undercover investigation into the theft and trafficking of ancient Indian artifacts around the Four Corners area. At most places, six or seven armed officers moved in, rousting the occupants and securing the homes so that government archaeologists and photographers could enter and begin cataloguing evidence.

June 17th, 2009 Holder defends arrests in artifact theft raidSALT LAKE CITY — U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder on Wednesday defended federal agents involved in the arrests of nearly two dozen people accused of stealing or illegally trafficking in ancient artifacts from the Four Corners area.

June 15th, 2009 Salazar defends investigation into artifact theftsPARK CITY, Utah — Interior Secretary Ken Salazar says he stands behind the investigation that resulted in the indictments of two dozen people accused of illegally trafficking in ancient artifacts from the Four Corners region. Responding to a question from The Associated Press on Monday, Salazar says he has no regrets about the investigation and ensuing arrests.

June 14th, 2009 Utah senators call artifact theft raid overkillLAYTON, Utah — Utah's U.S. senators say they want Congress to investigate the actions of federal agents who arrested two dozen people in an investigation of the theft of ancient artifacts in the Four Corners region Sens.

June 12th, 2009 Man indicted in artifact theft probe found deadBLANDING, Utah — Authorities say a Utah physician indicted in a federal investigation into the theft of ancient artifacts in the Four Corners region has been found dead in an apparent suicide. San Juan County Sheriff's Chief Deputy Grayson Redd says James Redd was found Thursday afternoon by his local church leader near a dried-up pond on his property.

June 10th, 2009 24 indicted in Four Corners artifact theft probeSALT LAKE CITY — Two dozen people were indicted Wednesday after a sweeping undercover investigation into ancient artifacts stolen from public and tribal lands in the Four Corners area. Federal indictments unsealed Wednesday accuse the people of stealing, receiving or trying to sell American Indian artifacts including bowls, stone pipes, sandals, arrowheads, jars, pendants and necklaces.

May 8th, 2009 NC woman returns Roman artifact 25 years laterRALEIGH, N.C. — A North Carolina woman who returned a chunk of ancient Rome to Italian authorities 25 years after her husband pocketed it said Thursday she never felt comfortable keeping the terra cotta fragment, but her eldest son's death prompted her to set things right.

May 6th, 2009 Israeli police bust Palestinian artifact thievesJERUSALEM — Israeli authorities have arrested two Palestinians who tried to sell a looted 1,900-year-old papyrus document in Hebrew worth millions of dollars, police said Wednesday. After receiving information on the men and tracking them for several weeks, police arrested the two Tuesday at a Jerusalem hotel where they had arranged to sell the document, police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said.