complete fossil of a t-rex on the land. larson named it sue. later the rancher, the u.s. government and su indians claimed possession. the government seized the t-rex and he was sent to prison for two years for illegal transport of money. they call that an example of government over reach using certain laws. he was s sue was sold for ove $8 million. larson never saw a cent. how do you come back and keep digging? that was not fun but part of my life and i learned many things, things i have a curiosity about like what is life in prison like. reporter: it won t stop this fiercely independent scientists. new federal laws put in place say the land owner, not the government owns fossils. larson has already struck a modest deal with this rancher and a museum of the netherlands
for the first time in modern science, three of them at the same site at the pain staking week-long excavation they believe one of these will rival the most complete skeleton of a trisasatpos found. how old is this? millions of years. reporter: is it an addiction? it s an addiction, that s right. once you start doing this, you can t stop. reporter: the only time this independent fossil collector stopped digging, when we went to federal prison. in 1990 he paid a rancher to unearth the world s largest complete fossil of a t-rex on the land. larson named it sue. later the rancher, the u.s. government and su indians claimed possession.
the government seized the t-rex and he was sent to prison for two years for illegal transport of money. they call that an example of government over reach using certain laws. he was sue sue was sold for over $8 million. larson never saw a cent. how do you come back and keep digging? that was not fun but part of my life and i learned many things, things i have a curiosity about like what is life in prison like. reporter: it won t stop this fiercely independent scientists. new federal laws put in place say the land owner, not the government owns fossils. larson has already struck a modest deal with this rancher and a museum of the netherlands for the trio. for far less than he would have made at a public auction. larson says he s not in it for the money but the hunt. they are monsters, true monsters that were alive and to
week-long excavation they believe one of these will rival the most complete skeleton of a trisasatpos found. how old is this? millions of years. reporter: is it an addiction? it s an addiction, that s right. once you start doing this, you can t stop. reporter: the only time this independent fossil collector stopped digging, when we went to federal prison. in 1990 he paid a rancher to unearth the world s largest complete fossil of a t-rex on the land. larson named it sue. later the rancher, the u.s. government and su indians claimed possession. the government seized the t-rex and he was sent to prison for two years for illegal transport of money.