Judge Tosses Some Claims in Earhart Wreckage Case

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — A federal judge has declined a request by an aircraft preservation group to dismiss a lawsuit involving aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart's missing airplane.

A Wyoming man contends he was defrauded when the group accepted money to continue searching for Earhart's airplane after finding it.

U.S. District Judge Scott Skavdahl in Casper dismissed racketeering and negligence allegations on Wednesday but kept fraud and misrepresentation claims intact.

The lawsuit was filed in June by Timothy Mellon, son of the late philanthropist Paul Mellon, against the International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery of Delaware and its executive director, Richard E. Gillespie.

The defendants deny Mellon's claim that they found the wreckage in 2010 in the South Pacific. Mellon says he paid them over $1 million to continue the search in 2012.