Two tourists from California were arrested after a 10,000-year-old woolly mammoth tusk was shattered at the Ancient Ozarks Natural History Museum on March 8. The tusk, weighing about 90 kilograms and valued at $200,000, was considered a rare and irreplaceable artifact. Both men were charged with first-degree property damage and later released on bail.

Investigators say one man climbed onto the other's shoulders in an attempt to reach the tusk, with one of them trying to hang onto it. The display piece fell and broke into multiple fragments. The pair fled when confronted by a museum employee but were apprehended later that day.

Authorities described the tusk as a one-of-a-kind historical find that cannot be replaced. Although some larger pieces remain, many fragments were shattered beyond full restoration, marking a significant cultural and scientific loss.