Investigators Say a High-Profile Dealer Trafficked 2,000 Looted Artifacts

Prosecutors in Manhattan obtained an arrest warrant on Thursday for a high-profile, Princeton-educated antiquities dealer now based in Italy, accusing the man in court papers of trafficking thousands of illicit artifacts valued at tens of millions of dollars.The dealer, Edoardo Almagià, has been charged with conspiracy, taking part in a scheme to defraud and possessing stolen property owned by Italy.Matthew Bogdanos, the head of the Manhattan district attorney’s antiquities trafficking unit, appeared before a criminal court judge, Rachel Pauley, to obtain the warrant.Next, the district attorney’s office will ask Interpol to file a red notice, which is an international arrest alert that would allow authorities around the world to detain Mr.

Almagià, and work with Italian officials to begin extradition proceedings.The 80-page warrant for Mr.Almagià’s arrest describes a debonair figure who sold and donated prized artifacts to important museums and collectors, but who also operated under a cloud after the Italian authorities came to suspect decades ago that he had dealt with tomb raiders.Mr.

Almagià, whose LinkedIn page says he lives in Rome, could not be reached for comment, but he has previously denied wrongdoing and suggested that efforts targeting him were the work of overzealous investigators.“They’ve criminalized and destroyed the antiquities market,” he said in an interview with Princeton Alumni Weekly.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe....