Martin Bell

So a Tyrannosaurus Bataar is a cousin of the Rex. If you imagine the Tyrannosaurus Rex from Jurassic Park. The Babe Ruth of dinosaurs. The Babe Ruth of dinosaurs. The Bataar would be smaller, but still like 20 feet or so in length and native to Mongolia. And one of the interesting things, I say native to Mongolia, how do we know that? Yeah.

So a Tyrannosaurus Bataar is a cousin of the Rex. If you imagine the Tyrannosaurus Rex from Jurassic Park. The Babe Ruth of dinosaurs. The Babe Ruth of dinosaurs. The Bataar would be smaller, but still like 20 feet or so in length and native to Mongolia. And one of the interesting things, I say native to Mongolia, how do we know that? Yeah.

So a Tyrannosaurus Bataar is a cousin of the Rex. If you imagine the Tyrannosaurus Rex from Jurassic Park. The Babe Ruth of dinosaurs. The Babe Ruth of dinosaurs. The Bataar would be smaller, but still like 20 feet or so in length and native to Mongolia. And one of the interesting things, I say native to Mongolia, how do we know that? Yeah.

And we had needed to establish this in order to get the information required for a seizure warrant. Right. Because you can't just have the government running around stealing people's dinosaur fossils without justification.

And we had needed to establish this in order to get the information required for a seizure warrant. Right. Because you can't just have the government running around stealing people's dinosaur fossils without justification.

And we had needed to establish this in order to get the information required for a seizure warrant. Right. Because you can't just have the government running around stealing people's dinosaur fossils without justification.

And they were able to judge that it came from Mongolia, if only because in the entire history of paleontology, there's only one region that contains the soil composition that allows these particular fossils to be preserved. And that is the Nemect Basin in the Gobi Desert in Mongolia.

And they were able to judge that it came from Mongolia, if only because in the entire history of paleontology, there's only one region that contains the soil composition that allows these particular fossils to be preserved. And that is the Nemect Basin in the Gobi Desert in Mongolia.

And they were able to judge that it came from Mongolia, if only because in the entire history of paleontology, there's only one region that contains the soil composition that allows these particular fossils to be preserved. And that is the Nemect Basin in the Gobi Desert in Mongolia.

Clever girl. And so with that probable cause having been established, we appeared before a judge in the Southern District of New York, and he was very enthusiastic about the case and its possibility, in large part because he too had once been an eight-year-old boy. And so he asked a number of questions that you don't get in most conferences, like, can it fit in my courtroom? Where can we put it?

Clever girl. And so with that probable cause having been established, we appeared before a judge in the Southern District of New York, and he was very enthusiastic about the case and its possibility, in large part because he too had once been an eight-year-old boy. And so he asked a number of questions that you don't get in most conferences, like, can it fit in my courtroom? Where can we put it?

Clever girl. And so with that probable cause having been established, we appeared before a judge in the Southern District of New York, and he was very enthusiastic about the case and its possibility, in large part because he too had once been an eight-year-old boy. And so he asked a number of questions that you don't get in most conferences, like, can it fit in my courtroom? Where can we put it?

What sort of assembly would be required? This was all happening on the civil side, but on the criminal side, we were trying to figure out whether a crime had been committed here. The same crime that sort of forms the basis for potential forfeiture action may also be prosecutable on its own.

What sort of assembly would be required? This was all happening on the civil side, but on the criminal side, we were trying to figure out whether a crime had been committed here. The same crime that sort of forms the basis for potential forfeiture action may also be prosecutable on its own.

What sort of assembly would be required? This was all happening on the civil side, but on the criminal side, we were trying to figure out whether a crime had been committed here. The same crime that sort of forms the basis for potential forfeiture action may also be prosecutable on its own.

The crimes here were interstate transfer of stolen property, which is a federal statute, and false customs forms, because you can imagine the customs forms in this case had not actually said one Tyrannosaurus Batara skeleton. They'd been filled out somewhat misleadingly, and we were able to trace that.

The crimes here were interstate transfer of stolen property, which is a federal statute, and false customs forms, because you can imagine the customs forms in this case had not actually said one Tyrannosaurus Batara skeleton. They'd been filled out somewhat misleadingly, and we were able to trace that.

The crimes here were interstate transfer of stolen property, which is a federal statute, and false customs forms, because you can imagine the customs forms in this case had not actually said one Tyrannosaurus Batara skeleton. They'd been filled out somewhat misleadingly, and we were able to trace that.

And so the guy who had consigned this to the auction house was a gentleman named Eric Prokopi, who had a regular business with an internet page that sold various types of organic matter as fossils. Unsurprisingly, he was based in Florida and the business was called Florida Fossils. Perfect.

And so the guy who had consigned this to the auction house was a gentleman named Eric Prokopi, who had a regular business with an internet page that sold various types of organic matter as fossils. Unsurprisingly, he was based in Florida and the business was called Florida Fossils. Perfect.