4th Century Antiquity Returned to Yemen

NEW YORK -- (ICE) Assistant Secretary Michael Garcia returned a stolen Fourth Century A.D. cultural antiquity to the government of Yemen.

Mr. Garcia gave the antiquity, known as the "South Arabian Alabaster Stele," to His Excellency Abdulla M. Al-Saidi, the Ambassador of the Republic of Yemen. The stele dates to the period 300-400 A.D. The antiquity was stolen from the Aden Museum in Yemen in July 1994.

ICE agents recovered the stele in New York after a lengthy investigation that began in March 2001. At that time, ICE agents in New York began scrutinizing a well-known antiquities company called Phoenix Ancient Art S.A. and its owners for trafficking in illegally obtained antiquities.

Phoenix later attempted to auction the stele. ICE agents in New York and the ICE Attaché Office in Rome, Italy, were able to obtain proof that the Stele was, in fact, stolen.

In September 2003, ICE agents executed a seizure warrant and took possession of the stele. ICE arrested one of the Phoenix owners for the theft of an Iranian antiquity in December 2003. The owner pled guilty to the charge in June 2004.