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Denver Art Museum says nearly everything broken in vandalism spree can be repaired, downgrades damage estimate

Nearly all of the artifacts damaged in a vandalism spree last month can be repaired, Denver Art Museum officials said Tuesday as they downgraded their initial loss estimate from nearly $2 million to less than $100,000.

Jake Siebenlist was arrested Dec. 9 on suspicion of felony criminal mischief in the amount of $1 million or more after allegedly damaging centuries-old artifacts from China and the Mayan civilization that were part of the museum’s “Stampede: Animals in Art” exhibit.

A Denver Art Museum representative told police at the time that the damages were valued at almost $1.93 million and likely would increase with further evaluation, according to a Denver police probable cause statement.

Museum representatives on at least three occasions, including on Monday, declined to put a price tag on the damages when asked by The Denver Post, citing ongoing evaluations.

However, after the Post published a story citing the museum’s estimate to police, spokeswoman Jena Pruett said that dollar figure no longer was correct.

“The accurate value range totals less than $100,000 based on the determination that nearly all objects can be repaired through conservation activities,” Pruett said in an email Tuesday. “The initial estimate was calculated immediately following the incident based on the value of the objects, as the museum’s conservation team had not yet evaluated the objects or developed repair plans.”

Pruett said a 19th century vase from China cannot be repaired.

Though he was arrested on a more serious count, Siebenlist now faces a charge of felony criminal mischief on allegations of damaging museum property between $20,000 and $100,000, according to a criminal court filing.