kenb
Bronze Member
Police apprehend artifact dealers in İstanbul
Police in İstanbul seized a marble bust of the Roman ruler Caesar before it was sold illegally to a Cypriot businessman for $400,000.
Including the suspect acting on behalf of the businessman in the deal, three people were taken into police custody. The police had received a tip-off that the historic Roman artifact would be sold to a man from Ankara in a cafe in Beyazıt, a central district of İstanbul. The sides met the day before yesterday in a cafe and began bargaining. While discussions were ongoing Wednesday, police staged the raid.
Süleyman T. from Ankara, and the sellers Mustafa İ. and Eyüp I. were arrested, and the marble bust was recovered in the bag of Mustafa. In the Eyüp’s bag police recovered a bull’s head made from of solid gold, four coins bearing tuğra (the sultan’s signature), two bronze coins and three rings.
A study at the İstanbul Archeology Museum confirmed that the marble bust was that of the Roman Ruler Caesar Augusta. The golden object bull’s head is a relic from the Persian Empire, while the coins with sultan signatures date from Ottoman times. Süleyman T., believed to be acting as the agent for the Cypriot businessman, told police that he was in the cafe accidentally and had nothing to do with the artifacts. Mustafa İ. and Eyüp I. in their statement to police said that they got the historical entities from someone they did not know and that they had no intention of selling them. The suspects were released pending trial.
28.04.2007
Today’s Zaman İstanbul
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http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/detaylar.do?load=detay&link=109726
kenb
Police in İstanbul seized a marble bust of the Roman ruler Caesar before it was sold illegally to a Cypriot businessman for $400,000.
Including the suspect acting on behalf of the businessman in the deal, three people were taken into police custody. The police had received a tip-off that the historic Roman artifact would be sold to a man from Ankara in a cafe in Beyazıt, a central district of İstanbul. The sides met the day before yesterday in a cafe and began bargaining. While discussions were ongoing Wednesday, police staged the raid.
Süleyman T. from Ankara, and the sellers Mustafa İ. and Eyüp I. were arrested, and the marble bust was recovered in the bag of Mustafa. In the Eyüp’s bag police recovered a bull’s head made from of solid gold, four coins bearing tuğra (the sultan’s signature), two bronze coins and three rings.
A study at the İstanbul Archeology Museum confirmed that the marble bust was that of the Roman Ruler Caesar Augusta. The golden object bull’s head is a relic from the Persian Empire, while the coins with sultan signatures date from Ottoman times. Süleyman T., believed to be acting as the agent for the Cypriot businessman, told police that he was in the cafe accidentally and had nothing to do with the artifacts. Mustafa İ. and Eyüp I. in their statement to police said that they got the historical entities from someone they did not know and that they had no intention of selling them. The suspects were released pending trial.
28.04.2007
Today’s Zaman İstanbul
Comments | Send to Print | Send to My Friend
http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/detaylar.do?load=detay&link=109726
kenb
