A group of antiquities thieves were caught red-handed as they were allegedly plundering an ancient archaeological site in southern Judea, the Israel Antiquities Authority reported last week.
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The robbers were digging at Horvat Zaak, an ancient Jewish village dating back to the Second Temple period.
A seemingly innocent picnic by three adults and two children caught the attention of Border Police volunteers, who inspected the visitors' vehicles and found digging tools inside.
They also heard noises underground and when a man with muddy gloves emerged from a nearby cave, they immediately understood that they had stumbled upon an antiquities robbery.
A special Israel Antiquities Authority unit for preventing such robberies was immediately alerted. Officers arrested five Bedouin suspects from Tel Arad and Rahat – a Bedouin Arab town in the Negev – and confiscated digging tools and metal detectors. One suspect managed to escape.
The robbers broke into a previously unknown underground warehouse system believed to date back to the Roman period. They were arraigned at a local police station, interrogated and, released on bail. Charges are expected to be pressed against the suspects soon. If convicted, they could face a five-year prison sentence for illegal excavation and destruction of antiquities.
"Destruction of antiquities is done out of greed, and harms our heritage," the Israel Antiquities Authority said. "Any damage [caused] to the archeological strata and the antiquities in it is disastrous and irreversible, which makes it difficult for archaeologists to piece together the historical puzzle picture of the land of Israel."
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