Four people in the United States have been charged for purchasing and reselling “paleontological resources” worth over $1 million, including dinosaur bones exported to China. According to a Thursday statement from the US Attorney’s office in Utah, Vint Wade and Donna Wade, both 65, and Steven Willing and Jordan Willing, both 67, from Moab, Utah, and Los Angeles and Oregon, respectively, committed multiple felonies and violated the Paleontological Resources Preservation Act, also known as PRPA. The defendants are accused of illegally gathering, moving, selling, and exporting the fossilized remains between March 2018 and March 2023.
The indictment against the Wades and Willings alleges they collected dinosaur bones from federally managed lands without permits or authorization from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Rather than reporting the discoveries to the agency, the Wades and Willings stockpiled dinosaur bones and sold them to dealers at gem and mineral shows and national vendors for use in dinosaur dig kits and carved figurines. The defendants then allegedly shipped containers of dinosaur bones to China, vastly undervaluing the contents to evade detection by government agents. The alleged violations caused more than $3 million in damages, prosecutors say, calculating losses from the commercial value of the dinosaur bones, the scientific value, and the cost of restoration and repair.
In an attempt to evade detection, the Wades and Willings are also accused of shipping dinosaur bones found on private property, violating state laws and the federal Antiquities Act. In addition, the indictment alleges the defendants misled consumers by falsely representing that some of the dinosaur bones were obtained on public lands and that they had been purchased from BLM or other federal agencies when the skeletons were illegally taken from privately owned lands.
Taking the bones out of their natural environment further degrades their scientific value, a concern district attorney Trina Higgins voiced at a press conference Thursday. “Whatever value they had at the location they were found, what other bones were nearby, the type of soil they were in — all of that scientific information was destroyed by removing them from their natural habitat,” she said.
Prokopi is also accused of fraudulently describing the contents of his shipments on shipping documents. In one instance, he allegedly indicated that a shipment of fossils from Mongolia contained a Gallimimus, a smaller Asian cousin to the Tyrannosaurus Rex, and a Microraptor. This small flying dinosaur cruised through the skies of what is now China.
Those who find dinosaur bones or other fossilized remains on federal lands are encouraged to document their finds with a photo and report the discovery to the BLM, which will make arrangements for them to be preserved. According to officials, the southeastern part of Utah is a popular destination for tourists who want to experience the landscape and view the prehistoric remains. BLM Utah state director Gregory Sheehan said at a press conference on Thursday that dismantling this operation is essential in preserving and protecting “these priceless treasures for future generations.” The case was investigated by the FBI Salt Lake City Field Office and the BLM Monticello and Grand County Sheriff’s offices.
