An Australian museum worker who stole thousands of exhibits, including a stuffed lion and a rare dolphin skeleton, was jailed for seven years on April 20.
A Sydney court was told Henk van Leeuwen stole exhibits while working for the Australian Museum from 1996 to 2003 as a pest controller and skeleton moulder.
Anti-corruption officers raided the homes of van Leeuwen and two of his associates in 2003, finding more than 2,000 items from Australia's oldest natural history museum hidden in sheds, fridges and freezers.
PHOTO: AP
They included a stuffed lion acquired by the museum in 1911, the skeletal remains of a Ganges River dolphin, leopard and jaguar skins, as well as numerous skulls, skeletons and animal specimens preserved in formaldehyde.
An earlier court hearing was told the combined value of the hoard totalled AU$1million (NT$27.5 million), with the lion alone worth AU$50,000 (NT$1.3 million).
Van Leeuwen, 50, pleaded guilty to 15 counts of stealing.
Judge Peter Berman rejected van Leeuwen's defense that he took the items because he wanted to protect them.
Berman sentenced him to seven years jail with a five-year non-parole period, saying he had done "enormous, incalculable harm through his criminal activities".
"Many of the exhibits are unique and irreplaceable," the judge said.
"Through his selfish actions he has cost the Australian Museum not only a great deal of money but damaged its reputation and, perhaps most importantly of all, caused permanent harm to the ability of scientists to study many aspects of the natural history of Australia and the rest of the world." (AFP)
竊取獅子標本與稀有海豚骸骨等數千件展覽品的一名澳洲博物館員工,四月二十日入獄服刑七年。
雪梨法院接獲提告,一九九六年至二○○三年在澳洲博物館擔任害蟲管制與骸骨製模員的漢克.范里文,偷竊展覽品。
反貪官員於二○○三年突襲范里文與他兩位同事的家,發現兩千多件藏在車棚、冰箱與冷凍庫的澳洲最古老的自然歷史博物館館藏。
其中包括博物館一九一一年取得的獅子標本、恆河海豚的遺骨、花豹與美洲豹皮,以及無數的頭骨、骸骨與泡在甲醛裡保存的動物標本。
稍早法院聽證會中透露,這些收藏品的總值達一百萬澳幣(新台幣兩千七百五十萬元),光是那具獅子就值五萬澳幣(新台幣一百三十萬元)。
五十歲的范里文坦承犯了十五項偷竊罪。
法官彼得.柏爾曼駁斥范里文說自己欲保護館藏品才竊取的辯解。
柏爾曼判處范里文七年徒刑,五年之內不得假釋,並說他做出了「罪行嚴重且造成了不可估計的傷害」。
法官說︰「很多展覽品都很獨特且無法替代。」
「他自私的行為不僅讓博物館損失慘重,也損害館方聲譽,或許最重要的是,他對研究澳洲與世界自然歷史各層面的科學家專業造成永久傷害。」
(法新社/翻譯︰賴美君)
SAY WHAT? 說說看
raid 突擊
In this article, raid means "a surprise entry into a place by police." Police often carry out raids when they have some proof a suspect is guilty of a crime but need more evidence to be certain. More generally, a raid is a surprise attack by armed forces. "The five men on horseback raided the village, setting some houses on fire."
Raid comes from the same root word as both "road" and "ride" — a raiding party was likely to be riding horses along a road.
本文的「raid」意指「警方突擊一地」。警方持有嫌犯獲罪的證據,但需要進一步佐證時,經常會執行突擊檢查。更普遍來說,「raid」就是軍隊突然襲擊。例如︰「五位騎士突擊村莊,放火燒毀房舍」。
「raid」這個字的字根與「road」和「ride」相同,一個「raiding party」可能就是沿路騎馬的一群盜匪。
OUT LOUD 對話練習
Adam: I went to the science museum last weekend.
Mike: Did you see anything cool?
Adam: Yeah, there's an exhibit in town showing different organs, including a solid black lung from a smoker.
Mike: Gross, that's disgusting! Why would anyone want to see that?
Adam: It's educational even if it doesn't make your mouth water.
亞當︰我上週末去參觀了科學博物館。
麥可︰你看到了什麼很酷的東西嗎?
亞當︰是啊,有一個展覽陳列了各種不同的器官,還包括一個吸菸者硬化的黑肺。
麥可︰好噁心,真讓人想吐!怎麼會有人想看那種東西?
亞當︰雖然它不會讓你口水直流,卻具有教育意味。
make one's mouth water 口水直流
If something makes your mouth water, then you expect it to taste very good. "As soon as I walked into the restaurant, the amazing aromas made my mouth water."
假如某樣東西「makes your mouth water」,你期待它可口美味。例如︰「我一走進那家餐廳,香噴噴的味道就讓我口水直流」。
Jumping rope has long been considered an excellent form of exercise. It not only burns calories but also improves cardiovascular health and __1__ core muscles. Anyone who has used a traditional jump rope, though, knows that it requires a certain level of skill and coordination. However, with the development of the cordless jump rope, this is __2__ the case. The cordless jump rope is an innovation in the fitness industry that has gained popularity in recent years. As its name suggests, it doesn’t have a cord connecting the two handles. Instead, each handle features a short cord with a
A: Wow, three Taiwanese restaurants just won the 2024 “Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants” awards. B: Awesome! Which three restaurants? A: Taipei’s Logy at No. 22 and MUME at No. 34, and Taichung’s JL Studio at No. 33. B: Actually, there are many more great establishments in Taipei. How about other Asian cities? A: Singapore claimed nine spots this year, making it Asia’s new “food capital.” A: 2024「亞洲50最佳餐廳」名單揭曉了,台灣有3家餐廳上榜。 B: 好厲害,哪3家? A: 台北的Logy和MUME分獲第22和34名,台中的JL Studio獲第33名! B: 其實台北還有很多好餐廳,那其他的亞洲城市呢? A: 新加坡今年入選9家,可說是亞洲美食之都。 (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張聖恩)
Let’s explore another delicacy primarily known to Tainan locals: floating milkfish in thick soup. Despite its peculiar name, this dish is another Tainan specialty that showcases the popularity of milkfish, which is made into fish paste and served in thick soup. Unlike the version with tutuo fish, which also adds other ingredients to its thick soup, the floating milkfish version primarily features the “floating fish” itself in its thick soup, ensuring that the fish paste remains the star of the dish. 讓我們來探索另一道台南人熟悉的美食:浮水魚羹。這道菜名奇特的美食,再再展現了台南虱目魚料理的多樣。浮水魚羹是用虱目魚漿做成的羹品,雖然和𩵚魠魚羹一樣是羹湯,但不像𩵚魠魚羹會在湯中加入其他食材,而是讓虱目魚漿成為這道料理的主角。 peculiar (adj.) 獨特的;古怪的 The belly of a milkfish is considered the most
The practice of freezing embryos as part of in vitro fertilization (IVF) was thrown into chaos in Alabama this year, when the state supreme court ruled that such embryos should be considered children, exposing clinics to wrongful death claims in the event they are destroyed in the thawing process. In 2021, more than 80 percent of US IVF procedures involved the transfer of frozen embryos, according to a recent report by the US Department of Health and Human Services. HOW IS EMBRYO FREEZING USED IN IVF? IVF uses high doses of hormones to stimulate ovaries to produce as many eggs as possible. Once