Matthew Bogdanos

Colonel Matthew Bogdanos is a homicide prosecutor with the Manhattan District Attorney's Office and founder of its Antiquities Trafficking Unit, the only dedicated unit of its kind in the world. A combat-decorated Marine veteran and prosecutor whose work spans homicide and international antiquities trafficking, Bogdanos has built one of the most distinctive careers in American law and military service.

Following the September 11 attacks, Bogdanos was recalled to active duty, joining a counter-terrorism task force in Afghanistan and earning a Bronze Star for actions against al-Qaeda. He subsequently led the international investigation into the looting of Iraq's National Museum, recovering nearly 9,000 stolen antiquities and exposing critical links between antiquities trafficking and terrorist financing. He has addressed the United Nations, Interpol, the British Parliament, the European Union, and the U.S. Congress on these issues, and in 2005 received a National Humanities Medal from President Bush.

Since returning to the DA's Office, his Unit has recovered more than 6,100 antiquities valued at $480 million originating from across the Middle East, South Asia, and Southeast Asia. He holds degrees from Bucknell University, the Army War College, and Columbia University, and has been honored with knighthoods from both Italy and Greece.

Colonel Bogdanos' keynote address, "Combatting the Global Trade in Looted Antiquities," is an in-person exclusive presentation that will not be recorded.