Dino-Bust: Paleontologist Arrested, Charged With Illegally Importing Dinosaur Bones

The bones were allegedly looted in Mongolia

A commercial paleontologist at the center of a dispute over a Tyrannosaurus bataar skeleton allegedly looted from Mongolia was arrested Wednesday and charged with illegally importing dinosaur fossils into the U.S.

Federal prosecutors in Manhattan alleged that Eric Prokopi repeatedly misrepresented the contents of shipments to the U.S. of dinosaur fossils acquired in foreign countries between 2010 and 2012, including the shipment of the Tyrannosaurus bataar skeleton.