Tag Archives: David W. Bowker

U.S. Buyer Of Looted Antiquities Pays Steep Price To U.S. Government: Hobby Lobby Forfeits Thousands of Ancient Iraqi Artifacts, Pays $3M, and Admits Fault To Settle Civil Forfeiture Action

by David W. Bowker, Sharon Cohen Levin, Michael D. Gottesman, Laura M. Goodall, Kelsey M. McGregor, and Aleksandr Sverdlik

The U.S. government’s settlement with Hobby Lobby on July 5, 2017 is part of its broader effort to combat trafficking in looted antiquities from the war-torn Middle East and to reduce market demand for such objects by punishing participants in the black market.  Having scored this high-profile settlement in an early test case, the U.S. government likely will try to build on this success with additional investigations and enforcement actions. Continue reading →