Two men indicted for allegedly damaging ancient rock formations at Lake Mead

By Marnie Hunter and Elizabeth Wolfe, CNN

(CNN) — Two Henderson, Nevada, men have been indicted and are set to face trial for allegedly damaging ancient rock formations at Lake Mead.

Payden David Guy Cosper and Wyatt Clifford Fain were arraigned on Friday and both men pleaded not guilty to one count of injury and depredation of government property.

According to allegations in the indictment and a statement from the US Attorney’s Office, on April 7, 2024, the men pushed chunks of ancient rock formations over the edge of a cliff near the Redstone Dunes Trail at the Lake Mead National Recreation Area, causing damage in excess of $1,000.

“There were no signs posted at the entrance prohibiting pushing rocks or that it was a federally a protected site,” said Ross Goodman, an attorney representing Cosper.

“Mr. Cosper did not have any knowledge that pushing a boulder was unlawful until the US Marshalls showed up [at] his house four months later,” Goodman said in a statement to CNN.

Brian Pugh, the attorney representing Fain, said, “The justice system presumes that all accused of a crime are presumed innocent unless proven otherwise in a court of law. This applies to Mr. Fain.”

A jury trial is set for October 8, 2024. The defendants could each face up to 10 years in prison, if convicted, according to a release from the US Attorney’s Office, District of Nevada.

The National Park Service investigated the case, according to the US Attorney’s Office.  The men were arrested by the United States Marshals Service.

Park rangers sought the public’s help in April in identifying the suspects in the incident, which was captured on video.

Damage to the federally protected formations, which were shaped over time out of 140-million-year-old sand dunes, is irreversible. Recreation area spokesperson John Haynes called the destruction “appalling.”

“Why on earth would you do this to this area that’s so beautiful? It’s one of my favorite places in the park and they’re up there just destroying it. I don’t understand that,” Haynes told CNN affiliate KVVU in April.

The vast recreation area covers 1.5 million acres of breathtaking mountain views, canyon trails and two vital reservoirs that extend across the Nevada and Arizona border. Water sports at the Lake Mead reservoir are a major draw for the park’s 6 million annual visitors, but extreme drought in the West has caused the lake’s water levels to plummet in recent years, exposing sunken boats and several sets of human remains.

Stephen Watts contributed to this report.

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