“Shocking Loss: How a New Jersey Fossil Treasure Was Unthinkably Trashed by UPS—All Due to a University’s Oversight!”
He brought the boxes to William Paterson University’s mailroom, but according to the lawsuit, the university never paid their shipping bills, prompting UPS to deposit the fossils in a Tennessee dump. Now, the university is at the center of a lawsuit, with mailroom supervisor Raymond Boone also named as a defendant.
Becker cited the “destruction of his life’s work” and emotional distress as the basis for the suit.
How Professor Martin Becker Lost His Priceless Collection Of Prehistoric Fossils
NJ Spotlight NewsSome of the 380-million-year-old fossils in Martin Becker’s collection.
According to the lawsuit, Martin Becker’s fossil collection was “the most unique and comprehensive collection of marine fossils ever reported in Northern New Jersey.” The suit further asserts that these fossils were critical to Becker’s teaching and career, and that he and a colleague in Florida had been collaborating on a “comprehensive monograph” that included his fossils.
As part of that collaboration, Becker took 19 boxes containing 200 fossils to the mailroom at William Paterson University on June 18, 2024. The suit states that Becker handed the packages directly over to Boone, who told Becker that he would keep him up to date with tracking and insurance information. UPS picked up the packages later that same day.
Weeks passed, however, and Becker’s colleague never received the fossils. A few weeks turned into two months, and Becker once again reached out to Boone, who told him he was “working on the issue” with UPS. Becker received a tracking number for the shipment on August 16, which showed him that the packages were in Parsippany, New Jersey.
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