2 artists charged with misrepresenting themselves as Native American artists

SEATTLE — Two artists are charged with misrepresenting themselves as Native American artists, despite having no tribal membership or heritage, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

The men, 52-year-old Lewis Anthony Rath and 67-year-old Jerry Chris Van Dyke, were charged with violating the Indian Arts and Crafts Act. Rath is from Maple Falls and Van Dyke is from Seattle.

“By flooding the market with counterfeit Native American art and craftwork, these crimes cheat the consumer, undermine the economic livelihood of Native American artists, and impairs Indian culture,” said Edward Grace, assistant director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement.

Officials began investigating Van Dyke in February 2019 when the Indian Arts and Crafts Board received a complaint that he was falsely representing himself as a Nez Perce Indian Artist, the U.S. Attorney’s office said.

Undercover investigators purchased pendants from a gallery that Van Dyke sold to the gallery as Native American art, documents said. When he was interviewed by investigators, he admitted he was not a tribal member.

Van Dyke sold more than $1,000 worth of pendants represented as Native American art based on Aleut masks, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

He is charged with two counts of misrepresentation of Indian produced goods and products.

Officials began investigating Rath in May 2019, also based on a complaint to the Indian Arts and Crafts Board. The investigation found that he had been representing himself as a member of the San Carlos Apache Tribe, documents said.

Undercover agents purchased a carved totem pole and necklace from the same Pike Place gallery worth more than $1,344.

Agents served a search warrant on Rath’s home in Whatcom County and found feathers from protected birds, including golden eagles and hawks.

Rath is charged with four counts of misrepresentation of Indian produced goods and products, one misdemeanor count of unlawful possession of golden eagles parts and one misdemeanor count of unlawful possession of migratory bird parts.

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