Thanks to the efforts of the Miami Customs Department, 48 valuable Taino period items were returned to the Dominican Republic. In a press conference, Minister of Culture Tony Raful said that US Customs agents detected the contraband during a routine check of luggage on 1 September 2000. The US government returned the pieces to Miami Consul General Manuel Duran on 29 January 2001 who sent them back to the DR. The details of who was attempting to introduce them into the US were not revealed.
