The AP has a report on the life of an suspected Antiquities Smuggler. From the AP (via Google News): Leonardo Patterson made his first archaeological find at age 7 in a yam field in his native Costa Rica — a piece of clay pottery his cousin said could be thousands of years old. It launched a lifelong fascination [...]

The AP has a report on the increase of antiquities smuggling on the US Border this Fiscal Year. Read the report here.

Tomb raiders have created a huge market in the trafficking of ilicit artifacts dug up from government land, according to a report from The Macon Telegraph.  The articles quoted law enforcement officials who estimated that the illegal trafficking of artifacts amounts to a $5 to $6 billion market.  From the Macon Telegraph: Who are the looters? There are three [...]

A lawyer is on trail for attempting to sell and profit off a stolen painting that a former client brought to him in a plastic bag. From the AP (via The SF Chronicle): At first, nothing seemed out of place when Michael Bakwin returned to his home in the Berkshires after he and his family went away [...]

The United States has returned over 60 artifacts to the Colombian government that were seized during a 2005 arrest of art smuggler Ugo Bagnato. From the Guardian: For centuries, the dead guarded precious objects in their graves: painted terra cotta dishes, figurines, gold ornaments and other pre-Columbian artifacts. For the dead, they were offerings and objects for the [...]

The largest amount of black market fossils in history has been returned to Argentina. From the BBC: Four tonnes of dinosaur bones and other fossils stolen from Argentina are back home after they were seized while being sold on the US black market. They were welcomed in Buenos Aires at a formal ceremony attended by senior Argentine military [...]

A report highlights the art theft market that is occurring in Canada. From Canada.com: It’s a crime that captures the public’s imagination. But the reality of art theft - in the spotlight this weekend with the heist of 12 Bill Reid works - is quite different from the pop culture image, says an international expert. “The theft upon [...]

The Times of India has reported that ” According to intelligence reports, antique smuggling is estimated to be around $10 billion worldwide.” Other published reports has stated that the size of the smuggled art and antique market to be between $5 to $8 billion. Source: Arun Kumar Das, “Govt to crack down on antique smuggling,” [...]

Between May 2003 and February 2008,$752.5 million of art was stolen from museums and private collections worldwide. Source: Associated Press, “List of Notable Art Heists,” Washington Post, February 11, 2008.

Source: Reuters, ” India to curb smuggling of Buddhist relics,” Scotsman, October 17, 2006.