Feds: Onondagas should get remains

SYRACUSE — The New York State Museum should return the disputed centuries-old remains of at least 180 individuals to the Onondaga Indian Nation, according to a federal review panel.

The state museum had said it could not conclusively determine the cultural origins of the remains, which were discovered in 1967 in Tioga County and date to between 1000 and 1550.

But the National Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Review Committee voted 5-1 during a meeting Saturday in San Diego that the remains should be recognized as Onondaga and returned to the tribe within 90 days, the Onondaga’s attorney, Joseph Heath, said Wednesday.