Museum Director Is Found Dead

The 62-year-old American director of a museum in Thailand who was indicted in a federal investigation into looted antiquities was found dead in a detention center in Seattle, The Associated Press reported. The woman, Roxanna Brown, died early Wednesday, apparently of natural causes. Maggie Ogden, a prison spokeswoman, said an autopsy would be performed. Ms. Brown, director of the Southeast Asian Ceramics Museum at Bangkok University, was arrested last week while visiting relatives in Seattle and charged with a single count of wire fraud. Health problems kept her from appearing in federal court in Seattle on Monday. She was accused of allowing art collectors to use her electronic signature to overstate the value of art they donated to museums in Southern California. Investigators said that procedure allowed the collectors to claim fraudulent tax deductions.