Six Months Home Detention for Dealer Khouli

.

For smuggling Egyptian antiquities into the US by means of false declarations on customs forms, antiquities dealer Mousa ("Morris") Khouli has reportedly been sentenced by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York to six months of home detention and one year probation. As reported by Rick St Hilaire, the prosecutor had asked for 46-57 months of incarceration, but it would seem (from the relatively modest sentences given in US courts recently for other cultural property crimes) that US courts generally do not place much weight on cultural property crime, either committed at home (Four Corners) or involving the cultural heritage of others. This was pointed out by Khouli's lawyer in a pre-sentencing memorandum. The judge presumably said, "now go home Mr Khouli, and don't do it again!".