# British couple caught smuggling artefacts



## aykalam (Apr 12, 2010)

(AFP) 
CAIRO — Egyptian police prevented a British man and his wife from smuggling 19 artefacts out of the country, an antiquities official told AFP on Sunday.
The couple were stopped in the southern Luxor airport with an assortment of relics including figurines and pots dating back to several eras, said Hassan Rasmi, who monitors the movement of antiquities in the country.
Police referred the wife to the prosecution after she broke three of the relics.
Egypt has a rich heritage of Pharaonic, Greco-Roman and Islamic antiquities which are often the prey of robbers and smugglers.
The country's former antiquities chief Zahi Hawass said more than 5,000 relics had been returned to the country since 2002.

:nono:

http://www.google.com/hostednews/af...ocId=CNG.f93648e502555ea3e976efe113d96c98.9c1


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## Maireadhoey (Jul 25, 2011)

Oh dear, dear me,

Now the "foreign fingers" are sticky, that should go down well!


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## MaidenScotland (Jun 6, 2009)

I can't find anything on this anywhere else.. anyone else find anything?


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## GM1 (Sep 30, 2008)

British couple caught smuggling artifacts in Egypt
all the news sites refer to AFP as their source.


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## MaidenScotland (Jun 6, 2009)

GM1 said:


> British couple caught smuggling artifacts in Egypt
> all the news sites refer to AFP as their source.




Sorry I meant no source outside of Egypt.. normally that sort of thing would be all over sky news and the daily mail.


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## MaidenScotland (Jun 6, 2009)

Sorry but until I see photos, names etc or reported on a news station outside Egypt I will take this with a pinch of salt
I wonder if this is the same reporter who reported the two thousand plus prisoners being released from Torra last month..


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## GM1 (Sep 30, 2008)

yes, you are right! Normally it should be all over the news in England! Although I think that AFP is a reliable news source.
But it is now also on CBSnews: Egypt says Brit tried to smuggle artifacts - CBS News


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## MaidenScotland (Jun 6, 2009)

GM1 said:


> yes, you are right! Normally it should be all over the news in England! Although I think that AFP is a reliable news source.
> But it is now also on CBSnews: Egypt says Brit tried to smuggle artifacts - CBS News




Yes but it is still the same as the other report.

No names, no home town in the UK, no ages..


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## MaidenScotland (Jun 6, 2009)

A quick look at Luxor airport and no flights fly from there to the UK on a Friday.

They of course could be flying somewhere else or via another country


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## MaidenScotland (Jun 6, 2009)

mmm now I can't see where I read it was on Friday lol


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## MaidenScotland (Jun 6, 2009)

ahh it says Sunday.. which is yesterday.. no flights on a Sunday either


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## MaidenScotland (Jun 6, 2009)

Flights fly out at 17.20 and yet the couple were arrested, charged, reported to the newspapers and then reported on here at 16.07.

As I said.. I will believe it when I see it reported on British Media.. and the family being interviewed by Sky saying it is all a big mistake they bought the things at Khan Khalli and had no idea they were stolen artifacts.


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## MaidenScotland (Jun 6, 2009)

Btw this is not because I do not believe that Brits would do that.. it is just that the British media would normally jump all over an item like this.. they would be reporting their town, age, where they work and what company they flew to Luxor with.


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## Maireadhoey (Jul 25, 2011)

MaidenScotland said:


> Btw this is not because I do not believe that Brits would do that.. it is just that the British media would normally jump all over an item like this.. they would be reporting their town, age, where they work and what company they flew to Luxor with.


I agree the British media would be all over it... Ahram has a different version, flying from Cairo

Cairo Airport authorities foil smuggling attempt - Ancient Egypt - Heritage - Ahram Online


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## canuck2010 (Jan 13, 2010)

Looking at the selection of artifacts in the picture, those people knew what they were buying.


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## MaidenScotland (Jun 6, 2009)

canuck2010 said:


> Looking at the selection of artifacts in the picture, those people knew what they were buying.




And if indeed they did buy them.. where is the report on the arrest of the person selling?


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## aykalam (Apr 12, 2010)

MaidenScotland said:


> I wonder if this is the same reporter who reported the two thousand plus prisoners being released from Torra last month..


no, not the same reporter: that one doesn't work for AFP but Al Jazeera


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## expatagogo (May 31, 2010)

I wouldn't trust the pictures; they'll often use stock photos in news stories.


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## lonscotgib (Feb 27, 2012)

how silly can people be


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## expatagogo (May 31, 2010)

Update: Egyptian news is reporting they were fake, and the Bible was a family heirloom.


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## MaidenScotland (Jun 6, 2009)

If this has been a true story when they fly back to the UK they will be interviewed on sky tv..


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## dokki (Aug 17, 2011)

*No surprise*

UK couple released in Egypt 'artefacts' mix-up - Africa, World News - Independent.ie


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## GM1 (Sep 30, 2008)

At last an article from a British newspaper: British tourists arrested for 'smuggling artefacts' out of Egypt - Telegraph


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## MaidenScotland (Jun 6, 2009)

Ohh dear... 

Another nail in the tourist trade.. who will risk buying a copy from the museum shop etc now? 

I wonder how long they kept the couple before realising that they were in fact not artefacts but copies.


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## aykalam (Apr 12, 2010)

oh gosh...can this country get anything right when it comes to tourism? It almost seems like they are doing it on purpose to get rid of visitors


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## MaidenScotland (Jun 6, 2009)

I will be interested to hear about the bible..I know people who take bibles on their travels but surely no one would take a family heirloom or indeed an bible that was hundreds of years old. I could tell if a bible was modern so surely the authorities here can or was the bible brought into play for religious/political reasons?


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## Carolpolly (Feb 29, 2012)

The couple involved moved to Egypt approx 9 years ago and have lived variously between Luxor and Hurghada but had decided to return to uk. They were at the airport on Saturday to check in their cargo before flying out on the regular direct monday flight from Luxor Airport. As they were repatriating they had a large number of boxes and upon x-raying one an official checked the contents and accused the couple of smuggling antiquities. The items included small statuettes, pots etc and also their family bible that they had brought with them when they relocated here. 

The bible was printed and published in English and also contained their family tree so its incredible how this could have been mistaken for an egyptian artefact. There was also a coin from Romania which the 'experts' deemed to be greco roman! Now I have never seen the word ROMAN on a true roman coin, let alone ROMANIA! 

The couple in their sixties were arrested and taken to the police station where they were held overnight in cells and no one was able to contact them. The following day they were taken to court where the prosecutor apparently confirmed that all the other items were common tourist souvenirs commonly sold in the souk! I believe all the charges have been dropped and an official apology given but cannot confirm this but suffice to say they have returned to the uk no doubt thinking more than twice if they ever return!

The whole fiasco is absolutely appalling but of course not the first time this sort of thing has happened.


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## MaidenScotland (Jun 6, 2009)

Carolpolly said:


> The couple involved moved to Egypt approx 9 years ago and have lived variously between Luxor and Hurghada but had decided to return to uk. They were at the airport on Saturday to check in their cargo before flying out on the regular direct monday flight from Luxor Airport. As they were repatriating they had a large number of boxes and upon x-raying one an official checked the contents and accused the couple of smuggling antiquities. The items included small statuettes, pots etc and also their family bible that they had brought with them when they relocated here.
> 
> The bible was printed and published in English and also contained their family tree so its incredible how this could have been mistaken for an egyptian artefact. There was also a coin from Romania which the 'experts' deemed to be greco roman! Now I have never seen the word ROMAN on a true roman coin, let alone ROMANIA!
> 
> ...



I shipped some things home last years and was asked at customs if I had anything from the mountains


hi and welcome to the forum


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