When Jared F. Ehlers apparently decided to pilfer animal tracks from the wilds surrounding his hometown of Moab, Utah, he went really big.

The 35-year-old construction business owner has been indicted by a federal grand jury on multiple counts related to a dinosaur footprint lifted in February from slickrock in the Hell's Revenge jeeping area near the Sand Flats Recreation Area, just east of Moab.

The four counts -- the most-serious count carries a penalty of 20 years in prison -- allege Ehlers damaged or removed government property by stealing a three-toed dino print on Feb. 17.

The office of the U.S. Attorney for Utah said in news release that Ehlers will be issued a summons to appear in U.S. District Court.

The footprint in question was one of about 20 fossilized prints located at the site. An off-road tour operator discovered the rock with the footprint missing while visitors through the area Feb. 18.

Prior to the alleged theft, the print had come partially loose from the ground; the latest evidence suggests it was pried free with some sort of bar, said Rebecca Hunt-Foster, Canyon Country paleontologist for the Bureau of Land Management.

The footprint's loss has become a cause for locals support themselves by showing artifacts and other Moab attractions to tourists. As a result, several outfitters have contributed to a reward fund that at last count reached $7,000. It was unclear Tuesday whether someone was eligible for the reward.

So far, however, the footprint hasn't been recovered.

"It kind of proves a point that we locals here are not going to tolerate people coming in and taking what's here," Jason Taylor, operations manager at Moab Adventure Center, one of the companies that contributed to the reward, said in a story published by The Salt lake Tribune.

Taylor added he was disappointed to find out a local man was accused of taking the footprint, but was proud the community had come together to solve the case -- and get the print back.

After receiving a tip that the footprint was thrown in a nearby stretch of the Colorado River, the Utah Department of Public Safety dive team searched Saturday, but didn't find it.