BILLINGS – Amateur paleontologist Nathan Murphy, whose discovery of the world’s best-preserved dinosaur made him a leading name in the for-profit fossil industry, says he will serve 60 days in jail for stealing bones from private land in 2006.
Murphy, who runs the Judith River Dinosaur Institute, pleaded guilty in March to a single count of felony theft for stealing raptor bones from a landowner in the Malta area.
Murphy says he was sentenced Wednesday by District John C. McKeon, who imposed a $2,500 fine and $650 in restitution as well as jail time. Clerk of Court Iris Robinson says she cannot confirm the judgment because it was done from the bench and a final order has not yet been issued.
Murphy’s work includes unearthing a mummified duckbill dinosaur dubbed Leonardo, considered the world’s best-preserved fossil.