Colonel Gholamreza Zinali, the commander of the cultural heritage, tourism and handicrafts protection unit of East Azerbaijan said:
A person from Selmas, first tried to sell his historical and cultural property in Tehran, but he did not succeed and then traveled to Tabriz to sell his historical items in this city.
The commander of the cultural heritage, tourism and handicraft protection unit coinued:
Due to the importance of the matter, a judicial order was immediately issued to carry out a corolled operation and a sham transaction. Two members of the protection unit came to Pars Hotel in Tabriz in the guise of a buyer and under the guise of police and ielligence ages to meet with this seller and discover the property.
He added:
The seller initially iroduced a collection of coins, medallions and various statues and claimed that these objects were obtained from an unauthorized excavation in a cave around Selmas. With strict operational guidance, it was decided that the seller would display only one piece of coin for viewing and evaluation at the place of virtual transaction, so that the next steps could be taken.
Colonel Zinali said:
During this fake transaction, a sample of the coin was preseed by the seller and as soon as it was seen, the forces of the security unit iervened using the principle of surprise and succeeded in arresting the seller along with two other people on the spot. These people were prosecuted for the illegal purchase and sale of historical and cultural property as well as fraud.
He noted:
A piece of historical coin was discovered and seized in this operation, and the defendas, after being arrested and filing a preliminary case, have been iroduced to the judicial authority with the complai of the General Administration of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts of the province.
