Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
- July 6, 2010Artifacts dealer from southeast Utah is sentenced
- March 8, 2010Artifact cases will proceed despite source's death
- March 3, 2010Friend: Artifacts informant ‘brilliant,' ‘plagued by demons'
- March 3, 2010Suicide of key witness causes problems for artifacts trial
- March 2, 2010Undercover informant in stolen artifact case apparently commits suicide
- Feb. 23, 2010Utahn accuses feds of misconduct in artifact case
- Jan. 31, 2010Informant in artifact looting case got $162,000
- Nov. 20, 2009
Man pleads guilty to threatening federal informant
- Sept. 16, 2009
Mother, daughter sentenced in artifacts theft case
- Aug. 18, 2009
Lawyers in artifact looting case told to prepare
- Aug. 11, 2009
Utah man held in artifacts case for alleged threat
- July 15, 2009
Man remains jailed in threat over artifacts theft case
- July 13, 2009
Feds charge man with threatening informant in artifacts case
- July 6, 2009
Mother and daughter strike deals in artifacts theft case
- July 13, 2009
Feds charge man with threatening informant in artifacts case
- June 24, 2009
New warrant claims 2 arrested for artifact thefts also involved in fraud scheme
- June 17, 2009
Defendants in stolen artifacts case make appearance in court
- June 15, 2009
County commission asks Utah's future gov. to talk to Salazar about artifact arrests
- June 13, 2009
Senators to call for investigation of artifact raid
- June 12, 2009
Some say feds handled archaeology bust too harshly
- June 11, 2009
Utah man indicted in archaeology theft ring found dead
- June 10, 2009 Dozens arrested in archeological artifacts bust
SALT LAKE CITY -- A federal judge spared two more defendants Wednesday from going to prison in the aftermath of last year's huge law enforcement raid on trading of Indian artifacts.
So far, none of the defendants have been given prison sentences.
Originally, 26 people were arrested in the big federal raid on the Four Corners area. Two committed suicide, and so did the undercover informant in the case.
Now, the courts are dealing with those who have pleaded guilty, such as Brent Bullock of Blanding. His role was relatively minor. He admitted selling the informant a framed collection of artifacts that had been on his living room wall for years. Wednesday, the judge gave Bullock five years probation and no prison time after he made a courtroom apology.
"His point was that he was never involved in excavating or raiding Native American lands, but that he learned after all of this that what he had was illegal," said Bullock's attorney Earl Xaiz. "He shouldn't have had them."
He was never involved in excavating or raiding Native American lands, but he learned after all of this that what he had was illegal.
–Attorney Earl Xaiz
When asked by a reporter if he had anything he wanted to say, Bullock replied, "Only that I felt that it was fair and just and I'm glad that it's over, and at this time nothing more."
On Tuesday, 76-year-old Dale Lyman received five years' probation for trafficking a prehistoric Clovis spear point.
The judge gave another defendant, Tammy Shumway, 36 months supervised release.
That makes five defendants sentenced so far. All have avoided prison.
Nevertheless, the prosecutor says the raid sent a message to the community, prompting others to surrender artifacts obtained years ago.
"People are recognizing through these investigations and prosecutions that their contact way back then was illegal and wrong, and they want to do something to rectify it," said Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard McKelvie.
Several other defendants are still discussing plea deals, but at least one is expected to fight the charges and take the case to trial.
E-mail: hollenhorst@ksl.com
