The feds have unearthed a trove of fossils brought into the United States illegally. An investigation of a Wyoming fossil dealer uncovered dozens of fossils from Mongolia and China, countries that prohibit their export. The Wyoming dealer, John Richard "Rick" Rolater, pleaded guilty on Thursday (Jan. 2) to charges he conspired to smuggle fossils into the United States with the intent of selling them. Rolater, 69, owns two stores called By Nature Gallery, where he sells fossils and other items.
Bad to the Bone: Dealer Pleads Guilty in Fossil Smuggling Scheme
The feds have unearthed a trove of fossils brought into the United States illegally. An investigation of a Wyoming fossil dealer uncovered dozens of fossils from Mongolia and China, countries that prohibit their export. The Wyoming dealer, John Richard “Rick” Rolater, pleaded guilty on Thursday (Jan. 2) to charges he conspired to smuggle fossils into the United States with the intent of selling them. Rolater, 69, owns two stores called By Nature Gallery, where he sells fossils and other items.
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