www.thehistoryblog.com
Omni Transnational Looting Corp.
Antiquities traffickers have now escalated from the old standby of creating fake “Swiss private collection” origins to sell their stolen loot through reputable auction houses that look the other way to creating whole fake auction houses. It’s a one-stop shop, the entire operation from looters on the ground to international sale and export.
The Carabinieri Cultural Patrimony (TPC) squad in Bari, southern Italy, have busted an elaborate antiquities theft and fencing operation that goes far beyond the small-time, fragmented game of hot potato between looters, brokers, smugglers and dealers. Warrants were served on four individuals in Puglia and Lazio for criminal association connected to the receipt and illegal export of archaeological finds, but 32 people are under investigation, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
The order arises from a vast and complex investigation, conventionally called ” Art Sharing ” , started in 2020 by the TPC Nucleus of Bari, which led to the dismantling of a criminal association dedicated to clandestine excavation , operated by expert grave robbers and thieves, for the illicit possession and theft of cultural assets belonging to the unavailable heritage of the State, to the consequent receiving of stolen goods through a stable illicit supply channel and a consolidated logistics network aimed at concealment, determination of value, preparation of accompanying documentation for the attribution of an apparent lawful origin of the goods, as well as transportation by suitable means (specially prepared vehicles and professional couriers) and strategic communications aimed at evading possible investigations (telematic channels instead of telephone, use of cryptic language and false personal identities), in addition to the subsequent illicit exit and export from Italian territory, being able to count on the stable availability to purchase by subjects, including foreigners, involved in various capacities in the chain of receiving stolen goods. In particular, the entire illicit traffic of archaeological finds was managed through a phantom auction house called “COSTA’S GALLERY”, based in Antwerp (Belgium), attributable to two of the subjects affected by the precautionary measure, which offered the sale of mainly Apulian and Etruscan goods, illegally stolen from archaeological areas in central and southern Italy, to galleries and auction houses in various European and American countries.
The operation didn’t just ply its looted wares on the international market; it also had bases in Belgium and Spain as well as throughout Italy. Even the little but mighty Republic of San Marino was ensnared in its web. The investigation therefore had to range far and wide too, cooperating with law enforcement in Belgium, Germany, Spain, Austria and Switzerland.
During the investigations, searches were carried out abroad, with the collaboration of the Spanish Guardia Civil , the Belgian Federal Police and the Swiss Federal Police, in Granada, Valencia, Brussels and Lugano, which allowed the seizure of important archaeological finds purchased from the “non-existent” auction house, which sent the precious artefacts using the shipping logistics network created for the illicit purpose. Among the objects recovered (around three hundred) are decorated ceramic vases (in particular two red-figure Hydria , three black-glazed Kylix, two red-figure Lekanis , an Oinochòe with a trilobed mouth), over two hundred silver and bronze coins from various periods, many minted by mints in ancient Puglia (partly still affected by earthy encrustations), bronze rings and pendants, various metal detectors and excavation equipment, false attestations of provenance of the finds and computer equipment used for negotiations and commercial transactions. Among them, an exceptional marble sarcophagus dating back to the Roman imperial era discovered in Belgium and fifteen Etruscan sculptures discovered in Spain stand out, together with other ceramic finds dating back to the 5th-3rd century BC of Italian origin.
Even after four years, the investigation is far from over and the judicial process is still in the preliminary stages. The intricacies of this criminal organization will take years to unravel.
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