[MSN] Missing Suspects Detained over Lydian Hoard Theft

[Museum Security Network Mailinglist]

 Missing Suspects Detained over Lydian Hoard Theft 
By Cihan News Agency 
Wednesday, July 26, 2006 
zaman.com 


Two suspects sought in connection with the Usak Museum theft scandal have
been detained in Istanbul.

Istanbul police on Wednesday detained two suspects who had been sought in
relation to the Lydian Hoard theft from Usak Museum, which came to light in
late May. The detainees are expected to be transferred to Usak later today. 

In June, nine suspects including Usak museum director were arrested on
charges of 'smuggling historical artifacts as a group' and 'failure to give
information regarding embezzlement and evidence of crime.' 

The Usak prosecution office seeks up to 28 years imprisonment for seven
suspects, one of whom is still at large. The first hearing in the trial is
set to begin on September 7 at Usak Court. 

An antique gold seahorse brooch and some other pieces, which are part of a
unique 6th century BC Lydian collection, had been replaced with fake
artifacts in the Usak Museum collection. 

The brooch was part of the so-called Lydian Hoard, a collection of 363
silver, gold and glass pieces unearthed in the 1960s in burial mounds near
Usak and subsequently smuggled abroad. 

Some pieces were put on display at the Metropolitan Museum in New York in
1985, when Turkey launched a 2.5-million-dollar (two-million-euro) legal
battle to reclaim them. 

The treasures were returned to Turkey in 1993 and put on display in Usak in
1996. 


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