Members of an antiquity robbing gang were detained near Tzippori, North Israel, after a hiker spotted suspicious digging in the area of  an antiquities site.

Officers of the Israel Antiquities Authority arrested three men, all residents of Nazareth, after a short chase on foot. Digging tools used in illegal activities were also discovered. Tzippori, also known as Sepphoris, is located about six kilometres from Nazareth in the Galilee region and is known for its archaeological diversity, with findings with Hellenistic, Jewish, Roman, Byzantine, Islamic, Crusader, Arabic and Ottoman influences. In Israel damaging an archaeological site is a crime punishable by up to five years of imprisonment.

(after Israel Antiquities Authority, The Times of Israel & The Jerusalem Post)