The valuable red shoes were found in an FBI operation back in 2018 year, after they were stolen from the judy garland museum in August 2005 year, reports "CBC Minnesota".

It wasn't until 18 years after the theft, on Tuesday, that federal prosecutors charged him Terry Martin (76) from Minnesota for stealing this cultural heritage.

The shoes found are one of only four original pairs in existence. Investigators said in 2005 that the shoes were stolen from the Judy Garland Museum in Grand Rapids, Minnesota, with the thief breaking a window in the museum's back door to gain entry. There were no fingerprints and the alarm did not go off.

The red shoes are the central focus of the film "The Wizard of Oz", with the scene when Dorothy clicks her shoe heels together and says "there's no place like home", she moves back to Kansas.

The charging documents released Tuesday do not contain information about what led to Terry Martin's arrest. The executive director of the museum, Jenny Heitz does not believe that the suspect was ever employed at the museum.

The iconic shoes are valued at 3,5 million dollars. announced by the US District Attorney's Office North Dakota, which were insured on 1 million dollars at the time they were stolen almost 18 years ago.

Another pair of red slippers are in The Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., and another pair was purchased in 2012 by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.