[meteorite-list] Man Sentenced For Selling Fake Moon Rocks

From: David Freeman <dfreeman_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 09:44:39 2004
Message-ID: <3AB0E9F4.647E743C_at_fascination.com>

Dear List;
Does anyone have the email address of the owner of the Frass meteorite? He may find some
benifit in reading this article.......but then again maybe not.....
Very good post Ron!
Romansells would probably enjoy it too, he may have the intellegence to figure the hand
writing on the wall.
Best,
Dave Freeman

Ron Baalke wrote:

> National Aeronautics and Space Administration
> Office of Inspector General
> Washington, D.C. 20546
>
> March 14, 2001
>
> RELEASE: 2001-047
>
> 2001-047 -MAN SENTENCED FOR SELLING FAKE MOON ROCKS
>
> On March 12, 2001, Richard Keith Mountain, 53, (aka: Nicholas Parker Cole), formerly
> of New Milford, Connecticut, appeared before United States Magistrate Judge Roslyn O.
> Silver, District of Arizona, Phoenix. Mountain was sentenced to 21 months in prison,
> three years probation, 300 hours of community service, ordered to pay $98,750
> restitution, and pay a $600 special assessment fee.
>
> On April 29, 1999, Mountain was indicted by a Federal Grand Jury on 24 counts of mail
> and wire fraud for misrepresenting to prospective buyers that the materials he was selling
> were authentic and had been collected from the surface of the moon during the July 1969
> Apollo lunar landing. On October 30, 2000, Mountain entered a plea of guilty to six
> counts of mail and wire fraud in connection to this scheme. The investigation confirmed
> Mountain sold sand-like granules to multiple buyers throughout the United States,
> Australia, and Canada. These granules were scientifically tested and were determined not
> to be of lunar origin.
>
> Special Agents of the NASA Office of Inspector General, Office of Criminal
> Investigations, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, conducted this investigation.
> Assistant United States Attorney Michael T. Shelby, District of Arizona, handled the
> prosecution.
>
> *** End ***
>
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Received on Thu 15 Mar 2001 11:12:37 AM PST