Twenty-one of the allegedly looted relics will be returned to Italy and six to Egypt.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City in 2020. Photo: Alexi Rosenfeld/Getty Images
New York investigators have seized dozens of artifacts worth more than $13 million from the Metropolitan Museum of Art over the last six months, alleging they had been looted from around the world, according to theThe seizures indicate that the Manhattan district attorney’s office is stepping up efforts to close backlogged repatriation cases and crack down on the theft, looting and illicit trafficking of cultural property.
The seizures were spearheaded by the Manhattan district attorney’s antiquities trafficking unit working with federal officials.In total, 27 artifacts were seized from the Met through at least three search warrants, according to the Times. The antiquities are expected to be returned to their countries of origin in repatriation ceremonies set for next week.At least eight of the artifacts had been acquired by the Met through Gianfranco Becchina, who maintained a gallery in Switzerland and was convicted in Italy of illegally dealing in antiquities.
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