Thousands Of Ancient Bones Went Missing From Iowa During The 1990s, But One Detective Tracked Down The Stolen Bones And Their Thief Two Decades Later
In the 1990s, thousands of ancient bones went missing from Iowa’s Effigy Mounds National Monument, a location that is known for containing Native American burial remains.
About two decades later, a detective with the National Park Service tracked down the stolen bones and the culprit behind the theft.
The United States is home to countless burial mounds that were built by Native Americans over millennia. Most of the mounds are conical or rod-like structures made by piling up dirt into earthworks.
But in the Midwest, between 700 and 1,000 A.D., the construction of mounds became more complex and artistic.
Communities known as the Effigy Moundbuilders created mounds that were shaped like animals and water spirits. Many of these elaborate structures can be found in southern Wisconsin, but others are elsewhere, such as the 206 burials at Effigy Mounds in Iowa.
In 1976, Iowa passed the first protection law for Native American graves in the country, effectively stopping all archaeological work involving the burial mounds. Before then, archaeologists had been excavating the mounds and removing remains.
In 1990, the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAPGRA) was signed into law, which required all remains gathered within the past five years to be returned to Native American tribes.
In 2011, park officials realized that more than 2,000 bone fragments belonging to at least 41 people were nowhere to be found. Even worse, they had been missing for over two decades. The new superintendent, Jim Nepstad, launched an investigation into the missing artifacts.
Eventually, Thomas Munson, who served as the superintendent from 1971 to 1994, confessed to the crime. He hid the bones in his garage for over two decades.
EWY Media – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only
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The reason he did so was because he feared that the establishment of NAPGRA would prevent archaeologists from learning more about ancient societies in the Americas.
By secretly concealing the remains and thwarting the law, he thought the bones could stay in the park’s collection.
The investigation revealed that Munson had taken a box of human remains from the park’s curatorial facility and put them in the trunk of his car.
He ordered a subordinate to do the same. Then, he drove the boxes home to hide them. Throughout the investigation, Munson repeatedly lied about what happened to the remains.
In the end, a detective recovered the boxes containing the stolen remains. Experts found that several of the bones were broken and could not be restored. Munson pled guilty to hiding and removing the remains in 2016.
As part of his plea agreement, he wrote a public statement expressing his regrets for his wrongdoings.
He was ordered to 10 consecutive weekends in jail, a year of house arrest, and 100 hours of community service. He also had to pay $108,905 in restitution and a $3,000 fine.
The incident highlighted serious lapses in security within the National Park Service. Additionally, it underscored the need for better protection and respect for the heritage and culture of Native Americans, whose ancestors were buried in the mounds.
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