Another sentenced in 4 Corners artifacts case
Updated: 8/05/2010 7:48 pm | Published: 8/05/2010 7:32 pm
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - A Utah man who sold two pieces of ancient pottery to a government informant was sentenced to three years of probation.
Monticello resident Aubry Patterson was the seventh defendant from a federal roundup of artifact collectors in the Four Corners area to avoid prison time.
Charges are pending against 15 more defendants for trafficking in artifacts taken from federal or tribal lands.
Patterson told federal judge Dee Benson in Salt Lake City he was sorry and won't dig up artifacts again.
He pleaded guilty to two felony theft charges as prosecutors dropped six other counts.
Prosecutors described the 57-year-old Patterson as a longtime collector who surrendered hundreds of artifacts after his arrest.
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Copyright 2010 Newport Television LLC All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
