Crime & Safety
Palmdale Man Convicted Of Illegally Importing Ancient Roman Mosaic From Syria
Prosecutors claimed the 56-year-old paid $12,000 and did not disclose that he was importing Syrian antiquity.
June 22, 2023
A federal court convicted a Palmdale man of illegally importing a two-millennia-old Roman mosaic taken from Syria during the height of the country's civil war.
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According to the United States Department of Justice, Mohamad Yassin Alcharihi purchased the mosaic in 2015. The art piece depicts the story of Hercules rescuing Prometheus from Greek and Roman mythology. Prometheus, commonly referred to as the God of Fire, had been chained to a rock for defying his fellow deities and delivering fire to humanity.
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The ancient Roman Mosaic weighs about 2,000 pounds and depicts the myth of Hercules rescuing Prometheus, who was held captive after delivering fire to humanity/US DOJ/Obtained by CBS News
Prosecutors claimed the 56-year-old paid $12,000 and did not disclose that he was importing Syrian antiquity. Instead, Alcharihi lied to his customs broker and declared that he was importing ceramic tiles from Turkey for less than $600. The DOJ claimed a governmental appraisal expert valued the mosaic at $450,000.
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