Man accused of selling fake Native American jewelry - Santa Fe New Mexican
A Los Angeles man has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Albuquerque on six counts of fraud alleging he sold jewelry he falsely claimed was made by the late, renowned Hopi artist Charles Loloma, who had a presence in Santa Fe.
Robert Haack, 51, pleaded not guilty Thursday during a video teleconference arraignment from Los Angeles, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Albuquerque said in a news release. He was released on pretrial supervision.
According to the statement, Haack was indicted late last month on two counts of wire fraud, two counts of mail fraud and two counts of violating the federal Indian Arts and Crafts Act. The law prohibits the sale of items that are falsely represented as Native American-made.
Haack is accused of violating the law in April 2013 and June 2014 “by displaying and offering for sale jewelry in a manner that suggested that it was Indian produced and the product of American Indian tribes,” the statement said. He allegedly used online marketing and payment platforms to sell counterfeit jewelry he claimed was produced by Loloma.
Loloma, who died in 1991, was a graduate of the Institute of American Indian Arts, and his contemporary pieces are featured on the online Martha Hopkins Struever gallery, marthastruever.com, based in Santa Fe. The late Hopkins Struever knew Loloma from 1975 and penned a book about him, Loloma — Beauty is His Name, said gallery director Bonnie McClung.
“It’s just disheartening when we hear people are attempting to counterfeit the work of these great artists,” McClung said Friday.
“Loloma is widely recognized as the father of contemporary American Indian jewelry because his innovative style was a complete departure from traditional forms,” the gallery says on its website. “With the evolution of his work, Loloma attained increasing fame, and today is the most widely collected of any American Indian jeweler.”
Contacted by phone Friday at the Hopi Reservation, Loloma’s niece Verma Nequatewa said she was already aware of the indictment. “I knew somebody was going to get caught sooner or later,” she said.
Nequatewa’s husband, Robert Rhodes, said federal agents had been investigating the scheme for almost 10 years. “Those who knew about it had pretty much given up hope.”
According to the news release, prosecutors believe Haack produced the counterfeit jewelry in his Los Angeles home and delivered it to an Albuquerque buyer by mail.
If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The indictment includes a forfeiture provision seeking return of any proceeds from illegal activities and a financial judgment of at least $19,398.
“This indictment is not only about enforcing the law, it is also about protecting and preserving the cultural heritage of Native Americans,” U.S. Attorney John C. Andersonsaid in the statement. “This case demonstrates our willingness to prosecute those who falsely market products as ‘Indian Made,’ and thus undermine the livelihoods of Native American artists.”
