Stolen Art Watch, Toronto Smash and Grab Art Heist, Sherman Tanked !!

Arrest made in Yorkville art theft

http://news.nationalpost.com/2011/04/21/arrest-made-in-yorkville-art-theft/

Police have arrested one suspect and are searching for another two weeks after a pair of thieves smashed their way into a Yorkville art gallery, stealing three paintings worth an estimated $73,000.

Aaron Sherman, 43, has been charged with break-and-enter, mischief and two counts of failing to comply with probation.

Toronto police have released a surveillance image of the remaining suspect.

The artwork, meanwhile, is still missing.

The heist occurred, in the early morning of April 7, at 196 Davenport Rd. Two men smashed the front windows, entered the gallery and removed the framed paintings from the walls.

Security cameras recorded images of a man casing the gallery days before the theft. An officer recognized the suspect in the security image and was able to make the arrest, said Constable Wendy Drummond, spokesperson for Toronto Police.

The widespread use of security cameras should have deterred the criminals, she said. “Yet people continue to commit criminal offence knowing full well their images have been captured.”

Raphael Wagner, president of Odon Wagner Gallery, said this was the company’s greatest loss in 42 years of business, “but we’re very pleased an arrest has been made. Obviously, if the paintings are findable, of course I would want them back.”

The stolen paintings are: Wild Fields by Greg Harris, Still Life with Flowers by Weidong Wang, and Seated Lady with Fan by Zhao Kaolin.

Odon Wagner Gallery specializes in 18th and 19th Century European Paintings.