Man charged with selling fake Native jewelry

A California man was arraigned on a federal indictment charging him with violating the Indian Arts and Craft Act for allegedly selling fake jewelry under the guise that it was created by a renowned Native American artist.

Robert Haack, 51, appeared in an Albuquerque court last week via video teleconference and pleaded not guilty to six charges. He was released on pretrial supervision and conditions of release.

Among other charges, Haack is accused of selling counterfeit artwork and representing that it was created by Charles Loloma, a late Hopi artist.

A six-count indictment charges Haack with two counts of wire fraud, two counts of mail fraud and counts of violating the Indian Arts and Crafts Act.

“It’s just in the initial stages and haven’t seen a piece of discovery yet,” said Ben Wilson, Haack’s attorney.

Wilson said Haack works in a family business but he didn’t have specific details about his career.

“This indictment is not only about enforcing the law, it is also about protecting and preserving the cultural heritage of Native Americans,” John Anderson, the U.S. Attorney for the District of New Mexico, said in a prepared statement.

The U.S. Department of Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service, Office of Law Enforcement led the investigation.

“Every indictment filed under the Indian Arts and Crafts Act brings us closer to bringing justice to the Native American artists who are harmed by forgery and fraud in the marketplace,” said Edward Grace, Acting Assistant Director of the Office of Law Enforcement for the U.S Fish and Wildlife Service. “We hope this and other indictments will deter further this type of harmful criminal activity. We thank the law enforcement agencies that supported us and partnered with us during this investigation.”

If convicted, Haack faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.