US hands over looted dinosaur fossils to Mongolia

[yuiyoshida]

The United States on Tuesday handed back to Mongolia fossil remains of six species of dinosaur smuggled out of the country and impounded by agents in New York and Utah.

NEW YORK: The United States on Tuesday (Apr 5) handed back to Mongolia fossil remains of six species of dinosaur smuggled out of the country and impounded by agents in New York and Utah.

The largest item was the skull of an Alioramus, an exceptionally rare dinosaur believed to have roamed the Gobi Desert 66 to 70 million years ago.

A relative of the more widely known Tyrannosaurus, only two specimens are reported in scientific literature, both of them from Mongolia. US authorities described the fossil as the most complete Alioramus skull yet discovered.

The skull was confiscated by customs after being shipped from France with false papers claiming it was a cheap replica, US authorities said. The shipper later submitted forged Mongolian export documents, officials added.

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asiapacific/us-hands-over-looted/2669194.html

[Octafish]

1. Good news!

Amazing creature, that must have been, too.



Looks like a pint-size T-rex.