Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2010 | 5:46 p.m.
A 57-year-old Pahrump man was indicted by the federal grand jury today on felony charges that he removed and damaged a large petroglyph on U.S. Forest Service land in the Spring Mountains National Recreational Area near Pahrump.
Michael Cook was charged with a single count of violating the Archaeological Resources Protection Act. If convicted, he faces up to two years in prison and a $250,000 fine, Nevada's U.S. Attorney Daniel Bogden said.
The indictment stated that Cook removed and damaged the petroglyph, which depicts seven sheep, sometime between March and September 2008. The Nye County Sheriff's Department discovered the 200-pound petroglyph in Cook's front yard last June.
He is scheduled for an initial appearance and arraignment on Feb. 26 at 8:30 a.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert Johnston. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Yang.
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