{"id":2579794,"date":"2026-03-14T08:34:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-14T12:34:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/visit-goes-horribly-wrong-two-california-men-face-felony-charges-for-snapping-200k-tusk-off-woolly-mammoth-museum-exhibit\/"},"modified":"2026-03-14T08:37:14","modified_gmt":"2026-03-14T12:37:14","slug":"visit-goes-horribly-wrong-two-california-men-face-felony-charges-for-snapping-200k-tusk-off-woolly-mammoth-museum-exhibit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/visit-goes-horribly-wrong-two-california-men-face-felony-charges-for-snapping-200k-tusk-off-woolly-mammoth-museum-exhibit\/","title":{"rendered":"Visit Goes Horribly Wrong: Two California Men Face Felony Charges for Snapping $200K Tusk off Woolly Mammoth Museum Exhibit"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">38<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fvisit-goes-horribly-wrong-two-california-men-face-felony-charges-for-snapping-200k-tusk-off-woolly-mammoth-museum-exhibit%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2579794&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Two men from Petaluma, california, were arrested after allegedly causing about $200,000 in damage to a woolly mammoth exhibit at the Ancient Ozarks Natural History Museum in Ridgedale, Missouri. They were seen on security footage around 10:53 p.m. on March 8, with reports stating that one man coaxed the other to grab the mammoth tusk; the man on the shoulders reached the tusk, causing it to break and shatter on the floor.The <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >tusk weighs roughly 200 pounds<\/a> and was valued at about $1,000 per pound. The pair fled but a witness pursued them, brought them back inside, and called authorities. Both men, described as being in their <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/a-guide-to-aging-gracefully-thats-actually-graceful\/\" title=\"A Guide To Aging Gracefully That\u2019s Actually Graceful\">late 40s<\/a>, were charged with first<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/man-attempts-to-carjack-fully-marked-police-car-with-officers-inside\/\" title=\"Man Attempts To Carjack Fully Marked Police Car With Officers Inside\">-degree property damage<\/a>, a Class E felony, and released on $15,000 bonds. The incident occurred while the museum was closed, and the mammoth skeleton is one of the prominent displays at the site, which houses tens of thousands of artifacts and is part of the Top of the Rock attraction near Big Cedar Lodge. Missouri Class E felonies carry a maximum penalty of up to four years in prison and fines up to $10,000.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Was it a social media stunt gone wrong? A case of consuming a few too many beers? Or was it just exceptionally juvenile behavior?<\/p>\n<p>Whatever the original inspiration, two men are likely rethinking their life choices as they now stand accused of a felony offense for allegedly causing $200,000 worth of damage to a woolly mammoth exhibit in Ridgedale, Missouri.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.yahoo.com\/news\/articles\/200k-mammoth-tusk-shattered-top-185547066.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">KOLR-TV<\/a> reported that Brett Howard and Todd Azevedo of Petaluma, California, were arrested by investigators with the Taney County Sheriff&rsquo;s Department after the incident at the Ancient Ozarks Natural History Museum.<\/p>\n<p>The museum, which features an extensive collection of Native American and prehistoric artifacts, is part of the Top of the Rock attraction at Big Cedar Lodge.<\/p>\n<p>The news report cited a probable cause statement, which said the two men were observed on a security monitor near the woolly mammoth skeleton at about 10:53 p.m. on March 8.<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadAnyclip() { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst container=document.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!container) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=\"https:\/\/player.anyclip.com\/anyclip-widget\/lre-widget\/prod\/v1\/src\/lre.js\"; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"pubname\", \"westernjournalcom\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"widgetname\", \"001w000001jULVcAAO_M12924\");  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ append inside the container so player shows in correct spot \t\t\t\t\t\tcontainer.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING); 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\t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Azevedo waved Howard over and encouraged him to grab the tusk of the woolly mammoth fossil on display,&rdquo; KOLR reported.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Azevedo then lifted Howard onto his shoulders, giving him enough height to reach the tusk,&rdquo; the outlet said.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Once Howard grabbed the tusk, he allegedly tried to hang from it, causing it to break free and fall to the floor, where it shattered into multiple pieces.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"border: none; overflow: hidden;\" src=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/plugins\/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fphoto.php%3Ffbid%3D1331976002072988%26set%3Da.150489753554958%26type%3D3&amp;show_text=true&amp;width=500\" width=\"500\" height=\"479\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>The men reportedly fled, but a witness pursued them, brought them back inside, and called authorities.<\/p>\n<p>The two men &mdash; both in their late 40s &mdash; were arrested on charges of first-degree property damage, a Class E felony, and were released on $15,000 bonds, KOLR reported.<\/p>\n<p>The probable cause statement estimated the tusk&rsquo;s weight at around 200 pounds, and security staff said it was worth about $1,000 per pound.<\/p>\n<p>The museum itself would have been <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/maps\/place\/Ancient+Ozarks+Natural+History+Museum\/@36.5428188,-93.250756,19z\/data=!3m1!5s0x87cee2cbdb1360bd:0xa3147e6d35c961f!4m15!1m8!2m7!1sRestaurants!3m5!2sTop+of+the+Rock+Golf+Course!3s0x87cee2c492a240d1:0x79bdba58bf5cf219!4m2!1d-93.2507438!2d36.5433922!3m5!1s0x87cefd306e792f3b:0x190b2cf42b8fc8bb!8m2!3d36.5430268!4d-93.2502207!16s%2Fg%2F11d_83wrq7?entry=ttu&amp;g_ep=EgoyMDI2MDMxMC4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">closed<\/a> at the time of the incident, but the giant fossilized skeleton is an impressive showpiece displayed just outside the attraction in a central passageway, where it beckons to visitors passing between a restaurant, gift shop, and golf course entrance.<\/p>\n<p>As described in <a href=\"https:\/\/mainlymuseums.com\/post\/934\/ancient-ozarks-natural-history-museum-missouri\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">MainlyMuseums.com<\/a>, &ldquo;As soon as you enter the building, you are dwarfed by the skeletal remains of a massive woolly mammoth that once walked the prehistoric lands of our modern-day Missouri.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It is one of the largest artifacts, too tall to fit in the below-ground levels of the main museum.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The 35,<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/nolte-academys-woke-movie-museum-snubs-jews-who-founded-hollywood\/\" title=\"Nolte: Academy&#039;s Woke Movie ... Snubs Jews Who Founded Hollywood\">000-square-foot museum<\/a> contains over 75,000 artifacts, including extensive collections of fossils and Native American weapons, pottery, baskets, art, and clothing. The attraction was built by Bass Pro Shops CEO Johnny Morris, a native of nearby Springfield, Missouri.<\/p>\n<p>The Western Journal reached out to the organization for comment via phone and , but no response was received by the time of publication.<\/p>\n<p>A Class E felony in Missouri <a href=\"https:\/\/www.roselegalservices.com\/missouri-class-e-felony-charges\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">carries<\/a> a maximum possible prison term of four years and a fine of up to $10,000.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Two men from Petaluma, California-Brett Howard and Todd Azevedo-face first-degree property-damage charges after allegedly causing about $200,000 in damage to a woolly mammoth display at the Ancient Ozarks Natural History Museum in Ridgedale, Missouri. Investigators with the Taney County Sheriff\u2019s Department arrested them following a security-monitor sighting near the mammoth skeleton around 10:53 p.m. on March 8. According to the probable-cause statement, Azevedo urged Howard to grab the mammoth\u2019s tusk; Howard was hoisted onto Azevedo\u2019s shoulders to reach it, supposedly grabbed the tusk, and tried to hang from it, causing the tusk to break and fall to the floor in pieces. The pair allegedly fled, but a witness pursued them, brought them back inside, and called authorities. Both men, in their late 40s, were released on $15,000 bonds. The tusk weighed roughly 200 pounds, with security staff estimating a value of about $1,000 per pound. The museum, part of the Top of the Rock attraction at Big Cedar Lodge, features a prominent mammoth skeleton displayed in a central passageway. The institution houses thousands of artifacts, including fossils and Native American items. A spokesperson for the Western Journal sought comment, but none was provided by press time. In Missouri, a Class E felony carries a maximum sentence of up to four years in prison and fines up to $10,000<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2579795,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Woolly-mammoth.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[4045,6914,13286,5444,51799],"class_list":["post-2579794","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-california","tag-felony","tag-mammoth","tag-museum","tag-theft-2"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Woolly-mammoth.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2579794","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2579794"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2579794\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2579798,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2579794\/revisions\/2579798"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2579795"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2579794"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2579794"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2579794"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}