My Court Appearance As A Federal Witness Treasure Hunter

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There is another article on ijaz below this content, at the blog link above.

     My story in Lost Treasure magazine (Below) began my involvement with the case of Ijaz Khan.  Really, my involvement began when I met him at the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show, as the story below explains.  It all turned into a dark escapade, a malevolent carnival ride, and it was not fun and there was no happy ending.  This is being written to record the event publicly, and there is a lot more supporting documentation, but mostly redundant of this.  
     Ijaz ended up getting three years federal, and I was jerked out of my booth at Tucson right in the middle of my show, as if it was planned,  to appear in Alexandria Va, to testify against him.  I was definitely targeted and harassed in a way I have become familiar with, that having to do with making money, I have been shut off for many years now.  Domestic Terrorism by the Secret Police, the Stasi.
     Also I got more sick than I have ever gotten in my life after that trip, within one day, frienjds feared I was dying, and it felt like it.  And on the way to the airport out of DC I was given a ride by an agent and I had the worst and only chest pains I have ever experienced during that ride.  FYI all you treasure hunters, make GOOD records of the trash you pick up, that has the secret agent hix gnashing their teeth, but there are many who wake up every morning convinced the rest of the world is up to no good, and its their personal job to bust us.  These are the TV huggers, prey to the glamorization of the police state.  BE AWARE.


Metal Detecting The Kasmir Smast
By Bill Gallagher
1150 Words
 
     The first time I met Ijaz Khan was at the Tucson Rock and Mineral Show in February 2015.  I was working the Ethnographic Group Show at the Grand Luxe, which is an international show specializing in antiquities, ancient beads, and collectible vintage jewelry.  Its location is excellent, being right off I-10 in Tucson proper at Grant Road, and the accommodations are wonderful. Daniel Lopacki, of the Lopacki Collection, a good friend, and also a vendor of the Ethnographic Group, was selling his fine hand cut opal and slaughter mountain fire agate, as well as choice ancient beads of many types; he mentioned that it would be good for me  to visit Ijaz Khans shop during this show, and I followed his advice as quickly as I could.  I was glad I did.
 
     As soon as I entered the sales room of Ijaz Khan I was impressed with the quality and age of his antiquities, and one display in particular drew me to it like steel to a magnet:  4 coin hoards were carefully displayed in a glass case, and though all were different they each shared some traits that indicated to me they were of somewhat the same origin.  These hoards had been stored in small round pots which had since deteriorated, leaving behind coin masses welded together by corrosion and time, in the shape that they had been stored for all those years.  For the most part the coins in the hoards were bronzes, but some silver and gold was possibly inside the time-welded balls of coinage, though not visible to the naked eye.  While I was there one prospective buyer stated that it should be possible to calculate average density of bronze by weight, and determine thereby if silver or gold resided inside the hoards, and I thought that was interesting.
 
     As it turns out I was correct about the hoards originating in the same area, a place near the Khyber Pass in Afghanistan/Pakistan, which consists of a huge complex of caves and grottoes that was an actual city in ancient times.  The name of the city:  
The Kasmir Smast, or Kashmir Smast. Because the Khyber Pass was a major traffic route in the ancient world there was a huge amount of commerce that went on near it, with coins from all over Europe facilitating commerce for centuries.  Even a local coinage developed there, which in some ways imitates a lot of the coinage that has been used in the region over time, though there are a number of unique types of coins too.  Some even show a single bare footprint as the coinage device, another type shows a pair of bare foot prints. Stylized heads done in dotted patterns are also a type one sees often when studying the coinage of Kasmir Smast.
 
 
    Mr. Khans family has lived in this area for a very long time.  A lot of looking around has been accomplished by him and especially his immediate family, who showed him about these things early in his life.  In the vicinity of his home there are many ruins dating back to extremely ancient times; there are even Greek ruins on his Grandfathers property!  One of the best finds made by Ijaz as a youngster was a Kushan Buddha Head.  A visitor from England saw the head and tried to purchase it, but Ijaz would not sell it.  Then the visitor withdrew from the trunk of his rented car a nearly magical device, and after showing Ijaz what it did, he then obtained the Buddha head in trade for the device, which of course was a metal detector.
 
     Ijaz Khan was in business.  Salvage of ancient coins and other metal objects became not only his livelihood but his passion.  When asked how many coin hoards he has found in the Khyber Pass/Kasmir Smast area, he stated the number was over thirty.  One of the coin hoards I viewed had already been sold, so I was not allowed to take pictures of it, but I was allowed to photograph the remaining three, and I even obtained some of the loose coins from the remaining three hoards in a bulk deal, for conservation, which is one of MY passions. The types of coins included some of the very odd and unique Kasmir Smast types, and also Late Kushan type bronzes.  Occasionally the hoards contain silver and gold but not many of those make it to the states as they are bought up at the source.
 
      I asked if Ijaz had ever found gold coins in his hunts and he said yes, and even one hoard with a number of gold  coins in it.  His Grandfather, who has been hunting for a long while now, utilizing old methods like probing and test holing, has found four hoards of ancient gold coins in his life.  A good number of coins recovered by these "Regulars" are greek or types which imitate greek coins closely.  Later, say after 100 AD, the coins took on a much more local flavor as the Kushan Dynasty and those that followed became intent on creating a coinage all their own, although many of the devices still mirrored or imitated the earlier people who initially brought coinage to the area.
 
     Ijaz Khan now resides in Santa Fe New Mexico as an American citizen, where he sells his finds and the finds of others, and raises his family.  He is in his 40s with only slight grey coming on at the temples, and his dress and demeanor are always neat and business like, but nothing like stuffy.  He is friendly and well spoken, and quite a pleasure to visit with.  Ijaz really knows the history of his home and its artifacts too, better than anyone I have met.  He misses his home, but has not been back in some years because of the unrest in the region.  
 
     Ijaz Khan still metal detects but his heart is in the Khyber Pass, the Kasmir Smast; it is difficult for any place to compare to the experiences he has had in his home land.  It would be kind of like Mel Fisher detecting schoolyards and parks again.  I personally hope that the violence near the region he calls home abates, so that he can visit his family again, and metal detect the Kasmir Smast in search of coin hoards, bronze statues, and other items waiting to be found there.  
 
     If you get to Santa Fe, or even near it, and have an interest in antiquities from the far reaches of the world, do look up Ijaz Khan while you are there, I believe you will not be disappointed, or, if you happen to be near Tucson Arizona during the first two weeks of February look Ijaz up at the Grand Luxe, formerly the Grant Inn, alongwith with many other antiquities and gem dealers of The Ethnographic Group.  I will see you there!  
 
fin
 
 
Photograph Explanations:
 
DSC05548, DSC05550, DSC05551, DSC05553, DSC05554, DSC05560,DSC05561:
Various pictures of the Hoards from the Khyber Pass, Kasmir Smast area. Note:  There may be public domain pictures available of these areas for use in the article.
 
DSC05776, DSC05734, DSC05735, DSC05736, DSC05737, DSC05741, DSC05742, DSC05743:
Some close ups of the coin types from the hoards after professional conservation.  Most of the coins were Kushan Types, c200AD+, although there was quite a variety overall.



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Case of Ijaz Khan case no. 1:16-CR-130
Inbox
William Gallagher <luxefaire@gmail.com>
    
Wed, Jan 4, 2017, 12:06 PM
    
to jay.d.call
Dear Mr. Jay Call:

     I was just served papers by agents saying they represented you, I
signed the papers, but cannot appear in Virginia.  Because of health
reasons I cannot fly, and I have been living in extremis, nearly
homeless, for many years now.  I will not be subjected to this
treatment.  We are talking hardship galore.  My reply here to this
request is not negotiable, it is not possible for me to appear before
your court, nor will I be bound by contracts imagined and despicable.

I only know of Ijaz Khan because I attend the Tucson rock and mineral
show in the same hotel as him, as a helper to another dealer, and he
allowed me to take some pictures one year which I used in an article
in Lost Treasure magazine.  I am of no use to you or your
investigation.

 I need to hear back immediately there will be no more pursuit by your
offices in this matter of my being a witness in an affair I know very
little about.  I know customs has locked up some of Mr Khans property
for some  years now, and thats about it.  I know he has some cool
merchandise and I am a dealer too on ebay and other places.

If you want a copy of the article I wrote I will send you some jpgs of
the pages, no problem.  Please see that this is handled in a timely
manner.  Thank you for your time.

William Joseph Gallagher

Call, Jay D <Jay.D.Call@ice.dhs.gov>
    
Wed, Jan 4, 2017, 1:31 PM
    
to me
Mr. Gallagher

Thank you for your email.  Sorry about your health condition.

Unfortunately, you stating you cannot come to Virginia for medical reasons will not satisfy a United States Federal Court.   We would need information from a certified medical doctor stating the reason(s) you would not be able to attend.

If a doctor cannot not find a medical reason for you not to fly you are expected to appear in Virginia at the appointed time.  As a witness for the government, your airfare, hotel and a small stipend for meals will be provided.

Jay Call | Special Agent
U.S. Department of Homeland Security | Homeland Security Investigations | Washington, DC
T: 703-260-5244 | F: 703-260-3142
William Gallagher <luxefaire@gmail.com>
    
Wed, Jan 4, 2017, 1:54 PM
    
to Jay
You can find all applicable records concerning my health at the
Veterans administration.  I need for you to lay out for me how to
avoid this hardship so that I can do what little work I am able to do.
I am able to work once a year and this summons will short circuit
that.  What kind of person can disrupt their lives to fly across the
country on a frivolous pursuit with 26 days notice?  I need the name
and title of your supervisor please, and I want an email for Kathrine
Wong.  My main concern is hardship incurred, and I will need all
information concerning this to find its way to the right places.
There is no way I can appear before this court, and I will not
cooperate in the least concerning your coercive self importance, nor
with these proceedings.  Understand there is no case as far as I am
concerned, you are using your office to politically harass a member of
the press, on evidence you gained from an article of the press, and
that is not wise.

bill gallagher

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Hi Mr. Gallagher,

 

Below is the press release.

 

Best,

 

Angie Clement

Victim Witness Specialist

United States Attorney's Office

Eastern District of Virginia

Justin Williams Building

2100 Jamieson Avenue

Alexandria, VA 22314

Phone (703)299-3716

Fax (703) 299-3980

 

 

    

United States Attorney Dana J. Boente

Eastern District of Virginia

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

FEBRUARY 9, 2017

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Man Convicted of Smuggling Artifacts from Pakistan into United States

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Ijaz Khan, 42, of Sante Fe, New Mexico, was convicted today by a federal jury for multiple crimes, including his role in a conspiracy to smuggle ancient artifacts into the United States from Pakistan.

According to evidence presented at trial and court records, Khan was part of a conspiracy that smuggled ancient artifacts including pottery and bronze weapons, which were stolen from burial sites, and coins from a cave temple in Pakistan called the Kashmir Smast.  Khan and Vera Lautt, 57, also of Santa Fe, New Mexico, used their business, Indus Valley, to sell the artifacts.  One shipment of artifacts was stopped at Dulles International Airport in October 2013.  Ijaz and others then attempted to obtain the shipment by submitting various false and fraudulent documents to U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Khan was convicted of conspiracy to defraud the United States, procurement of citizenship or naturalization unlawfully, conspiracy to smuggle goods into the United States, smuggling goods into the United States, mail fraud, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, and obstruction of an official proceeding.  Lautt was convicted on charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States, and procurement of citizenship or naturalization unlawfully.

According to court records and evidence presented at trial, Khan and Lautt submitted fraudulent documents to the U.S. Department of State (DOS) and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), which enabled Khan to immigrate to the United States in 2003 and later become a naturalized U.S. citizen in 2009.  In order to further the conspiracy, Ijaz and Vera concealed Ijaz Khan’s wife and children in Pakistan. The conspiracy included eleven separate attempts to obtain immigration benefits by fraud, five of which were successful and another five of which were still pending as of the date of indictment.  According to court records, Ijaz Khan used his fraudulently-obtained U.S. citizenship to cause the fraudulent immigration and naturalization of his four oldest children.  Khan also filed petitions on behalf of his brother, mother and two youngest children.

Khan faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, while Lautt faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. Both will be sentenced on May 5.  The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Steve A. Linick, Inspector General for the Department of State; and Clark E. Settles, Special Agent in Charge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Washington, made the announcement after the verdict was accepted by U.S. District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema. Assistant U.S. Attorney Katherine L. Wong and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Harrison are prosecuting the case.

 

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.  Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:16-cr-130.

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