Casper, Wyo. • A Utah man faces felony charges resulting from alleged attempts to locate a famed treasure on the grounds of a cemetery in Yellowstone National Park.
Rodrick Dow Craythorn, 52, of Syracuse, Utah, was accused of digging in Fort Yellowstone Army Cemetery in northeast Wyoming while searching for the Forrest Fenn treasure.
Craythorn pleaded not guilty to charges of excavating or trafficking in archaeological resources and injury or depredation to U.S. property between October 1, 2019, and May 24.
The indictment alleges Craythorn caused more than $1,000 in damages to the cemetery.
Craythorn is scheduled to stand trial Dec. 14 in Casper. Craythorn’s attorney, Christopher Humphrey, declined to comment.
Fenn, a New Mexico art dealer, sparked a treasure hunt through several states after offering clues to a treasure he had hidden.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office said the treasure was located in an undisclosed Wyoming location in June.
People died while searching for Fenn’s treasure, while others had to be rescued from remote areas. An Indiana man searching for the treasure was rescued after climbing into the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone in December and was later banned from the park.
Fenn died in September at age 90.
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