Florida man declared 4,000-year-old Iraqi tablets as $200 terracotta pieces; wider probe uncovers ancient artefacts, $75,000

A shipment arriving in Florida from the United Arab Emirates was declared to contain two terracotta objects worth less than $200. But when US Customs and Border Protection officers inspected the package, they discovered two ancient Iraqi clay tablets dating back nearly 4,000 to 5,000 years and valued at more than $15,000 combined.

The discovery triggered a wider investigation into suspicious antiquities shipments linked to Matthew Weinberg of Miramar Beach, Florida. According to a November 9 announcement by the US Department of Justice (DOJ), Weinberg has now forfeited multiple foreign antiquities and $75,000 to the federal government.The investigation began in July 2025, when agents from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) were alerted by the Customs and Border Protection office in Pensacola about a shipment arriving at Pensacola International Airport from the UAE.