TUCSON, Ariz. - David James Ioli, 69, of Bowie, Ariz., was sentenced today by U.S. Magistrate Judge D. Thomas Ferraro to five years of probation and ordered to pay over $8,000 to the Bureau of Land Management after previously pleading guilty to unlawfully removing ancient Native American artifacts from an archaeological site on public land.
On multiple occasions in April and May 2012, Ioli visited the Nine Mile Archaeological Site, which is owned and managed by the BLM, near Bowie. Archaeologists date the site to the late Mogollon to early Salado period, which would make it between a thousand and eight hundred years old. During his visits, Ioli excavated and removed numerous artifacts, including pottery, arrowheads, and grinding stones known as manos and metates. Judge Ferraro ordered the repayment of $8,707 to compensate the BLM for both the restoration and repair of the site and the loss of scientific knowledge caused by the removal of the artifacts from their archaeological context. As an additional condition of probation, Ioli is not permitted to enter lands owned by the BLM, the National Park Service, or the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Ioli was also required to turn over to the BLM all the artifacts he took and all the tools he used to remove them.
The investigation was conducted by the Bureau of Land Management. The prosecution was handled by Brian R. Decker, Assistant U.S. Attorney, District of Arizona, Tucson.
CASE NUMBER: CR-16-336-TUC-CKJ(DTF)
RELEASE NUMBER: 2016-058_Ioli
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
