Stolen Art Watch, Insight Into How Police Investigate Art Crime !!!!

£10,000 painting found on thief's wall

A prolific thief has been jailed after a valuable painting stolen from a Hull museum was found hanging in his dining room.

The £10,000 work of art, painted by the renowned John Ward more than 150 years ago, was taken from the wall of Hull Maritime Museum, in Queen Victoria Square, city centre, on June 17 last year.

Initially, it was feared the 12in by 18in painting of a ship, called Schooners Ellen Crawford and Dwina, had been stolen to order and would never be recovered.

It was spotted by chance when two Humberside Police detectives carried out an arrest in a dingy two-bedroom terrace on Princes Avenue, off Greek Street, west Hull.

PC David Jacketts and Detective Sergeant Darren Rose had gone round to arrest Brian Adrian Thompson, 48, for failing to answer bail following four convictions for assaulting his wife.

They found Thompson, who has 58 previous convictions for theft, had hung the painting, in its impressive gold frame, on the chimney breast of his dining room wall.

It was surrounded by magazine cuttings and his wife Suzanne Lynford's own art work.

It is believed Thompson acquired the painting for his wife, due to her love of art.

He has now pleaded guilty to possessing criminal property and been jailed for 18 months.

His wife was also cautioned for possessing criminal property.

Doncaster Crown Court heard Thompson denied stealing the artwork and there was no evidence he had been the one to remove it from the museum.

Judge Jacqueline Davies said: "Items like this are part of the heritage of the city of Hull, building on its reputation and art links with the maritime world.

"This was a serious offence. It would be obvious to anyone looking at it that it was an item of some value - the frame is gilt and ornate. It has a plaque upon it describing its age and there are written documents on the back giving an indication to its age.

"It is valued in the region of £10,000, but it is not just monetary value - it is historic value."

When the police recovered the painting, they did not take any fingerprints or carry out any forensic tests on it for fear of damaging it.

Thompson had screwed two holes into the back of the frame in order to hang it, but no damage was caused to the actual painting.

Judge Davies added: "The item in question is a work of art belonging to the Maritime Museum.

"Thankfully, the painting has been recovered, but it was a valuable item in your possession for a period of up to three months."

The court heard it was painted in 1843 – the same collar tag as PC Jacketts.

He added: "It was a strange coincidence."

Simon Green, assistant head of culture and lifestyle for Hull City Council, which runs the museum, said: "We are delighted that the painting was found and safely returned to its home in the Maritime Museum."

Mr Green, who revealed the painting had been screwed to the wall when it was taken, added: "A theft from a public collection is a theft from everyone in the city."

Art Hostage Comments:

This is a valuable insight into how Police investigate art crime.

When an art crime is committed Police issue a Crime number to the victim and then, wait for it, Police cross their fingers and hope they stumble across the stolen art during an unrelated investigation.

That's it folks, that is the sum of Police efforts into investigating art related crime.

In this instance Police were lucky, but the other 99% of the time stolen art remains outstanding.

Stolen Art Watch, Tiny Reward Offered for £5-10 Million in Stolen Art !! Update !!!!

Art theft in Somerset prompts £50,000 reward

A £50,000 reward has been offered after paintings were stolen during an aggravated burglary in Somerset.

Sixteen paintings were stolen including Endymion by George Frederick Watts, alone estimated to be worth up to £1m.

Masked intruders got away with the works after forcing their way into a property, near Bruton, in March 2009 and left a woman tied up.

Police said the victim, 47, was found at 1600 GMT the next day with bruising, and "extremely shaken and distressed".

A police spokesman said Apple Blossom by Sir George Clausen, An Italian Peasant Boy by Richard Buckner, A grey pony in a stormy landscape by James Ward and John Anthony Park's St Ives were also taken.

Richard Ellis, director of the Art Management Group, which offers services for people seeking to acquire, conserve, or recover art and antiques, said: "Clausen was a prominent British artist and a member of the [Royal] Academy. Apple Blossom is an oil on canvas which is signed and dated 1899 on the reverse.

"The most high-value painting is the Watts oil on canvas. I would estimate this is worth £800,000 to £1m."

He said the paintings were not saleable on the open market.

"They have all been placed on the Art Loss Register and would be very difficult to shift through dealers. It is conceivable they could have been used as a commodity to exchange for drugs or as collateral for other criminal operations," he added.

The owner of the paintings is offering the reward for the arrest and conviction of the offenders, and the recovery of the artworks undamaged.
-
Update:
-
Detective Inspector Jim Bigger of the Somerset East Public Protection Unit said: "This is a substantial reward, however I do not see this a simple recovery exercise for the paintings, I am focused on the facts that the paintings may lead me to the persons responsible for committing this extremely violent crime, a crime which resulted in my victim being tied up for 18 hours. That is my objective."

Stolen Art Watch, Patrick Moorhead Step- Brother Lennox Cato, Brighton Antiques Mafia Strikes Again !!!!

Antiques raid on town shop

VALUABLE vases have been stolen during a raid on a TV personality's Edenbridge antiques shop.

Lennox Cato, who runs the self-titled premises in the High Street, told the Courier of his shock at hearing it had been broken into on Sunday morning.

The award-winning antiques dealer, who is also a town councillor, has become something of an influential figure in the business, making regular appearances on the BBC's Antiques Roadshow.

Mr Cato said the seven 18th century Japanese ornaments were worth "thousands" but was reluctant to reveal the full extent of the loss.

He found out when he got a phone call first thing in the morning. The alarm system had been activated shortly after 6am as a result of the break-in.

"They came through the back, it is worrying," he said. "They took some vases, which is most strange because they are ceramic and it would have been difficult to take them without breaking them.

"Someone has stolen something to order. That's the general consensus by ourselves and the police.

"They didn't take anything else," he said.

Mr Cato said more security measures were being considered as a response to the burglary, and it was not the first time the shop had been targeted in the 13 years it has been trading in the town.

The vases were displayed in the window and Mr Cato suspects they had been spotted before the back door was smashed.

The items stolen were five Japanese Imari vases, comprising two spill vases and three vases with covers. They also took two Meiji period Imari vases that had been made into lamps. Forensic evidence discovered at the scene will form part of the investigation.

Mr Cato and his wife Sue are insured, but they are still keen to find the people responsible.

He said: "We want to catch these thugs. It's just intimidating for people who live in the surrounding area. There are too many burglaries.

"It just undermines your confidence."

Det Con Mark Howell said: "I would urge anyone who may have been in the area early on that Sunday morning and thinks they may have seen something that could help with our investigation to contact police as soon as possible."

Art Hostage Comments:

Hmm, first Patrick Moorhead nearly has his Antiques warehouse torched, now Lennox Cato, step-brother of Patrick Moorhead has his shop burgled.