Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg, Jr., revealed the return of nine ancient artifacts to Costa Rica on Thursday. These items came from investigations into looting and trafficking rings that target cultural heritage in South and Central America. Dealers and collectors allegedly snuck them into the U.S. and hid their origins through fake stories, shows, and gifts to museums.
“I am thrilled that these nine pieces are being returned in what is our first repatriation with Costa Rica,” Bragg said. “I am grateful to all of the investigators and prosecutors who developed this complex and multi-faceted investigation.”
Costa Rica’s Consul General, Ambassador Mabel Segura Fernández, praised the effort. “The dedication and commitment of the Manhattan D.A. and the Antiquities Trafficking Unit have made possible an invaluable achievement,” she said. “It is a gesture of justice, of respect, and of friendship that strengthens the ties between our nations and honors the principle that cultural heritage must be preserved for generations to come.”
Among the returned pieces sit six jade celts, or axes. These pendants date back to around 600-1000 CE and rank as some of the most looted items from ancient Costa Rica. Carvers shaped them from jade to show human or animal forms. People often placed them in tombs with other fine stone goods, like the jade mace head also going back now.
The Antiquities Trafficking Unit, or ATU, led the work under Bragg. Since he took office, the team recovered about 2,400 artifacts stolen from 47 countries, worth $260 million. The unit formed in 2017 and has since convicted 18 people on cultural property crimes. It pulled back around 6,100 items valued at $480 million and sent about 5,750 of them to 31 countries.
Chief Matthew Bogdanos of the ATU, along with Assistant DAs James Edwards-Lebair and Taylor Holland, handled the probes. Investigative analyst Charlotte Looram, DA investigator John Paul Labbat, and Homeland Security agent Robert Fromkin helped out too.
This return fits into Bragg’s push against art crime. The office has sent back thousands of pieces from places like Italy, Greece, and Egypt in recent years. For Costa Rica, these nine items mark a start to stronger ties on protecting shared history. As trafficking networks grow bolder, such steps remind everyone that stolen pasts belong to their origins.
