(WENN) — The return of a dinosaur skull previously owned by Nicolas Cage to Mongolia has been approved by a New York judge.
The order by Judge J. Paul Oetken on Wednesday paves the way for the 32-inch-long fossil to be shipped back to the Asian nation and arrangements will now be made for its return.
Nicolas bought the Tarbosaurus bataar fossil, a species similar to the more famous Tyrannosaurus Rex in 2007 at a Manhattan auction from a gallery based in Beverly Hills, California for around $276,000. U.S. authorities investigating the black market in stolen fossils contacted the National Treasure actor in 2014 to tell him they believed the skull may have been illegally removed from Mongolia.
In December last year, Nicolas’ publicist Alex Schack confirmed to Reuters the star had “fully cooperated with the investigation and had agreed to to forfeit the fossil after an inspection by U.S. Department of Homeland Security agents.
According to The Associated Press, court papers show investigators believe the skull was looted from the Gobi Desert in Mongolia and shipped through Japan to Gainesville, Florida, in June 2006 bearing a false customs label. The catologue at the 2007 auction, at which Nicolas reportedly outbid fellow actor Leonardo DiCaprio to buy the skull, described the item as a, “remarkable specimen,” which was, “scientifically accurate and important”.
The actor is not accused of any wrongdoing in relation to his purchase of the fossil.
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