Stolen Art Watch, Durham Museum Heist, Police, Prosecutors & Perpetrators Go Dutch

WANTED: Adrian Stanton, and Lee Wildman both 35

HEADING INQUIRY: Detective Superintendent Adrian Green at the Oriental Museum, in Durham City

Prime suspect in Durham Oriental Museum £2m art theft is released in error

http://www.theadvertiserseries.co.uk/news/durham/9643603.Prime_suspect_in_Durham_Oriental_Museum___2m_art_theft_is_released_in_error/

POLICE and the Crown Prosecution Service were at loggerheads last night over who ordered the release of one of the chief suspects in a £2m antiques theft.

The suspect, who was being questioned in connection with a robbery at the Oriental Museum, in Durham City, has since vanished and a nationwide manhunt is under way.

Lee Wildman, also known as Jason Green, was arrested after an organised crime gang tunnelled through the wall of the museum and stole two rare artefacts from the Qing dynasty, an 18th Century jade bowl and a Dehua porcelain figurine. The 35-year-old suspect, one of five arrested over the Easter weekend, was given bail on Monday.

The Northern Echo understands police in the West Midlands tried to re-arrest him on Tuesday night for further questioning, but he escaped and has not been seen since.

Last night police and prosecutors disagreed over who made the decision to release him. Detective Superintendent Adrian Green, who is heading the investigation, said: “He has been arrested, he has been interviewed he has been bailed and now we wish to interview him again.

“He is wanted and we will be making inquiries to trace him and re-arrest him.

“The evidence was felt by some not to be strong enough to justify his charge.

“The police do not decide on charging anymore.”

However, the Crown Prosecution Service rejected any insinuation that its lawyers made the decision to release Mr Wildman, insisting it had given police the go-ahead to charge him.

said: “This was a fast moving matter with finely balanced decisions taken within strict legal custody time limits.

“The first reviewing lawyer concluded that the police had not yet provided enough evidence for the CPS to decide whether or not this suspect should be charged, and recommended that further evidence be sought while the suspect was on police bail.”

“A more senior lawyer looked at the matter after the police appealed the decision and agreed with the first lawyer.”

However, when the second CPS lawyer spoke to police about his decision, more evidence came to light which, it is believed, prompted a change.

The CPS said: “Within ten minutes of considering this new information, the senior lawyer was able to conclude that there was sufficient evidence to charge the suspect under the threshold test and that, on balance, there was, therefore, enough evidence to charge while the police gathered more evidence for a full charge. The lawyer communicated this to the police immediately and with 13 minutes remaining on the custody clock time limit.”

Regardless of whoever let the suspect go, the police are now in the embarrassing position of trying to find him again.

Det Supt Green said the other man he wants to speak to is 32-year-old Adrian Stanton, who is also from the West Midlands.

Forty officers are working on the investigation to trace the gang who created a 3ft hole in the wall of the Malcolm Mac- Donald Gallery of the Durham Univ e r s i t y - owned museum at 10.40pm on Thursday.

They used hammers and chisels, taking 40 minutes to break through the wall, before crawling into the gallery.

Once inside, they found the exhibits, smashed the glass cabinets and were out in less than a minute.

Det Supt Green said: “I would expect they would be looking to get them out of the country as soon as possible.

They may well be heading for auction in other countries.

Unfortunately, they may have been stolen for a criminal and may never appear on the market.”

Police also want to trace two black men and a man with olive skin, aged between 16 and 24, who spoke with London accents and visited the museum on Thursday.

Police believe the men were staying in an empty property or rented accommodation, such as a hotel or guest house, and want to hear from landlords who may have found dumped clothes or tools, or know where their cars may have been stored.

They are working with West Midlands Police to trace Mr Wildman, who is from Walsall and Mr Stanton, whose last known address was a flat in West Bromwich Street, also Walsall.

Three men, aged 56, 41 and 27, as well as a woman aged 34, all from the West Midlands area have been arrested, questioned and released on police bail in connection with the burglary.

Stolen Art Watch, Durham Chinese Jade Heist Duo Hit The Big-Time, Mugshots Go Global

Two men named, Photo's released over £2m museum raid

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/two-men-named-over-2m-museum-raid-7637083.html

Police released photographs tonight of two men wanted in connection with a well-planned raid on a museum in which treasures worth more than £2 million were stolen.

A gang coolly chiselled into Durham University's Oriental Museum through an outside wall, taking more than half an hour, then took as little as 60 seconds to grab two Chinese artefacts which were probably stolen to order.

They had almost certainly checked out the museum lay-out previously as they made their way in the dark straight to the two cabinets, and then made off before police alerted by the alarm got to the scene.

Durham Police named Lee Wildman, also known as Jason or Lee Green, 35, from Remington Road, Walsall, West Midlands, and Adrian Stanton, 32, from West Bromwich Street, also Walsall, as the two men they want to trace.

Mr Wildman was one of five people from the West Midlands who were arrested and bailed pending further inquiries, following Thursday night's raid.

Both men will be aware they are wanted by police, Det Supt Adrian Green, who is leading a 40-strong team of detectives, said.

"I am keen to speak to both these men as soon as possible," he said. "They will both be aware of our interest and if anyone knows where they have gone, I would ask them to contact the police or to ring Crimestoppers."

Using torches to see, the gang made straight for two separate cabinets containing an 18th century jade bowl and a Dehua porcelain figurine.

Despite making arrests, the artefacts have not been found and police have alerted the ports, but it is feared they may have already been spirited out of the UK.

The bowl dates from 1769 and has a Chinese poem written inside, while the figurine is of seven fairies in a boat and stands about 12in (30cm) high.

Both are from the Qing Dynasty, China's last imperial dynasty, and their total value is estimated by auctioneers at more than £2 million.

Mr Green said: "It is obviously well planned.

"The criminals went through the wall of the museum and they were going for two items in particular."

He wanted to trace two black men and an olive-skinned man who all spoke with London accents and who were seen in the museum just six hours before the raid.

They were spotted in the Meadowfield and Brandon areas of Durham before and after the theft.

He also wanted the public to tell him about sightings of an orange Renault Megane, a light blue Audi S3 and a BMW 330.

Mr Green said: "It is a big deal. These items have an estimated value in excess of £2 million and to the people of the university they are absolutely priceless.

"Durham Constabulary are taking this very seriously.

"We have a team of 40 experienced detectives and we have support from other forces around the UK assisting us in what is a fast-moving investigation."

His message for the two wanted men was to hand themselves in to West Midlands Police.

"Let's get talking and let's see where their involvement has been in this investigation," he said.

Dr Craig Barclay, the museum's curator, said: "We are extremely upset to have fallen victim to such a serious crime.

"The two pieces are highly significant in that they are fine examples of artefacts from the Qing Dynasty in the mediums of porcelain and hard stone.

"We very much hope that police will be able to recover them and we urge anybody who may have any information about their whereabouts to contact the police immediately."

Stolen Art Watch, Durham Museum Raid, Hole In Wall, Police Looking Into It

Pair named in £2m Durham University Oriental Museum raid probe

POLICE have named two men wanted in connection with a well-planned raid on a museum in which treasures worth more than £2m were taken.

Detectives need to trace Lee Wildman, also known as Jason Green, who has already been arrested and bailed following the theft of two Chinese artefacts from Durham University's Oriental Museum on Thursday night.

Detective Superintendent Adrian Green named the other man he wanted to speak to as Adrian Stanton.

Both men are from the West Midlands, the detective leading a 40-strong team said.

"We want to speak to them about this burglary and they will be able to help us with our inquiries," he said.

Stolen Art Watch, Durham Chinese Jade Take-Away, Suspects Released

Durham University artefacts raid 'highly organised'

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tyne-17668887

Raiders who stole two artefacts worth a total of £1.8m from Durham University carried out a "well-planned and highly organised job", police have said.

The night-time break-in at the university's Oriental Museum took place on Thursday 5 April.

Thieves got into the museum's Malcolm MacDonald Gallery, escaping with an 18th Century jade bowl and a Dehua porcelain figurine.

Five people of Walsall, West Midlands, were arrested and bailed until June.

The four men, aged 27, 56, 41 and 36, and a 34-year-old woman were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit burglary.

Museum officials described the objects as "highly significant" examples of the Qing Dynasty.

The two artefacts have not been recovered.

'Stolen to order'

Det Supt Adrian Green said he estimated the burglars had been in the premises for only a minute or two at the most once they forced entry.

He said: "It seems very clear that this was a well-planned, highly organised break-in.

"They have spent around 40 minutes creating a hole in an outside wall and when it has been big enough, they have entered the gallery and made straight for these two items."

"I am sure this job has been planned for quite some time and I would think the artefacts have been stolen to order, for someone who has already identified a potential market."

Supt Green said he was especially keen to hear from anyone who saw a light blue Audi A3 and an orange Renault Megane in the Durham area on 4 or 5 April.

Both stolen items are from the Qing Dynasty, the last imperial dynasty in China, which ruled from 1644 to 1911.

The large green jade bowl, dating from 1769, is from the collection of Sir Charles Hardinge, a British collector of jades and hardstones. A Chinese poem is written inside.

The Dehua porcelain sculpture, which has a cream white glaze and depicts seven fairies in a boat, is 30cm in both height and length.

A spokeswoman for Durham Police said the estimated combined value of the pieces was £1.8m.

The museum will be closed until further notice.

Three bailed after artefacts stolen from Durham Museum

TWO men and a woman arrested in connection with the theft of valuable artefacts from Durham's Oriental Museum have been bailed pending further inquiries.

The trio, from the West Midlands, were arrested in connection with the theft of two Qing Dynasty pieces said to be worth almost £2 million from the museum which is part of the city's university.

The break-in took place at a ground floor gallery in the building at about 10.40pm on Thursday.

Stolen Art Watch, Joshua Knelman Talks "Hot Art" On The Morning Show

Award-winning journalist Joshua Knelman joins the show to talk about his latest book, 'Hot Art'.

Knelman was a founding editorial member of The Walrus magazine. His writing has appeared in Toronto Life, Saturday Night, The National Post, and the Globe and Mail.

His book 'Hot Art', released in the fall of 2011, stems from his award-winning feature article 'Artful Crimes' originally published in The Walrus, explores the world of stolen art.

Knelman will also be speaking Wednesday at the Art Gallery of Ontario, starting at 8 p.m.

See interview below:
http://www.globaltoronto.com/Pages/MorningSegment.aspx?id=6442617706

Stolen Art Watch, Targeted Lady, Seven Carats Of Diamonds In Two Large Rings Stolen

Two £15k rings stolen from 77-year-old

TWO “extremely precious” rings worth £15,000 each have been stolen from a 77-year-old woman’s home in Dunstable.

The woman had left the rings on the bathroom windowsill of her Union Street home at about 10am on Thursday March 29 – when she returned an hour and a half later they were gone.

One ring bears a rectangular three carat emerald-cut diamond with ‘baguette’ diamonds down the shoulders of the platinum band.

The second features a round cut four carat diamond set on a platinum band.

Jewellers and antiques dealers are advised to be on the look-out for the items, which are both over 50 years old and are of particular sentimental value.

Stolen Art Watch, Durham Heist, Arrests Yes, Recovery, Debatable

Arrests made after £2m museum raid

http://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/9637326.Arrests_made_after___2m_museum_raid/

THREE arrests have been made by police after valuable Chinese artefacts worth an estimated £2m were stolen following an audacious raid on a North-East museum.

The exhibits were removed from display cabinets at Durham University's Oriental Museum late on Thursday.

A porcelain sculpture and large jade bowl dating from the Qing Dynasty were taken after intruders forced their way into the refurbished Malcolm MacDonald Gallery.

The university boasts one of the finest collections of Chinese antiquities in the UK.

There are fears they may now be spirited out of the country and auctioned off to wealthy collectors in China.

Last night Durham police said two men and a woman from the West Midlands area had been arrested and were being brought to a police station in the county for questioning.

None of the items have yet been recovered and police were still trying to trace other suspects.

Det Chief Insp Traci McNally said: “We are still trying to locate several outstanding suspects in relation to this investigation.

"We believe these individuals will be aware of the police investigation and we urge them to contact police without delay."

Dr Craig Barclay, the museum's curator, said: "We are extremely upset to have fallen victim to such a serious crime.

"The two pieces are highly significant in that they are fine examples of artefacts from the Qing Dynasty in the mediums of porcelain and hard stone.

"We very much hope that police will be able to recover them and we urge anybody who may have any information about their whereabouts to contact the police immediately."

An alarm was triggered at the museum, in the Elvet Hill area, at 10.40pm on Thursday and police arrived to find entry had been forced into the ground-floor gallery.

The jade bowl dated from 1769 and was part of the collection of Sir Charles Hardinge, a British collector of jades and hardstones. It has a Chinese poem written inside.

The thieves also took a Dehua porcelain sculpture with a cream-white glaze of seven fairies in a boat, which is 30cm in height and length.

They are from the Qing Dynasty, Chinas last imperial dynasty, which ran from 1644 to 1911.

Boya Wong, 29, who is from Guang Zhai in China, and studying for a PhD at Durham University, fears the record-breaking prices for items of cultural and archaeological significance in his home country may have motivated the theft.

He said: "Chinaware was made for the high-ranking officers and the emperors so chinaware in the museum is likely to be very elite.

"If the royal family ordered one vase they would make thousands and choose the best, then destroy the rest of them so these piece could be the only one on the world.

"That is why they are very valuable because they are unique.

"The collection here is small but is very high quality.

"If either of the stolen pieces is damaged, it would be a real shame because they are of high academic value as they are representing the work of a time period in history."

Detective Inspector Lyn Peart, of Durham City CID, said police wished to speak to anyone who was in the Elvet Hill area of the city, between 10pm and 11pm on Thursday, and may have seen anything suspicious.

The Oriental Museum is the only museum in the North devoted to the art and archaeology of the Orient, with collections of Chinese and Egyptian artefacts.

Visitors can explore galleries dedicated to China, Ancient Egypt, Japan, India and Tibet, the Islamic world and south-east Asia.

It will be closed over the bank holiday weekend and will not reopen until further notice.

Stolen Art Watch, Durham University Museum Heist, Multi-Million Jade, Ray Scott From The Grave !!

Artefacts stolen from Durham University's Oriental Museum

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tyne-17637834

Two "priceless" artefacts have been stolen from Durham University's Oriental Museum in a night-time raid.

Thieves got into the museum's Malcolm MacDonald Gallery late on Thursday, escaping with an 18th Century jade bowl and porcelain sculpture.

Museum curator Dr Craig Barclay described the objects as "priceless" and "highly significant" examples of the Qing Dynasty.

Police said they were already following a "number of lines of inquiry".

Both stolen items are from the Qing Dynasty, the last imperial dynasty in China, which ran from 1644 to 1911.

The large green jade bowl, dating from 1769, is from the collection of Sir Charles Hardinge, a British collector of jades and hardstones. A Chinese poem is written inside.

The thieves also took a Dehua porcelain sculpture, with a cream white glaze of seven fairies in a boat, which is 30cm (11.8ins) in both height and length.

The university said it would not disclose the estimated value of the items.

'Museum closed'

Dr Barclay said: "We are extremely upset to have fallen victim to such a serious crime.

"The two pieces are highly significant in that they are fine examples of artefacts from the Qing Dynasty in the mediums of porcelain and hard stone.

"We very much hope that police will be able to recover them and we urge anybody who may have any information about their whereabouts to contact the police immediately."

The museum will be closed until further notice.

Dr Barclay added: "We are very sorry that our customers have been affected by this incident and intend to reopen as soon as possible."

Det Insp Lyn Peart, of Durham Police, said: "We are working with the university and following a number of lines of inquiry to trace the stolen items and arrest those responsible.

"We would like to speak to anyone who was in the Elvet Road area of the city between 10 and 11pm last night and who may have seen anything suspicious."

The university has been targeted by art thieves in the past, most notably when a rare copy Shakespeare's First Folio was taken in 1998.

County Durham antiques dealer Raymond Scott was later convicted of handling stolen goods. He was found dead in prison earlier this year.

Artefacts worth £1.8m stolen from Durham University's Oriental Museum

Two artefacts valued at £1.8m have been stolen from Durham University's Oriental Museum in a night-time raid.

Thieves got into the museum's Malcolm MacDonald Gallery late on Thursday, escaping with an 18th Century jade bowl and porcelain sculpture.

Museum officials described the objects as "highly significant" examples of the Qing Dynasty.

Durham Police said they were looking for three men seen in the museum earlier on Thursday.

Both stolen items are from the Qing Dynasty, the last imperial dynasty in China, which ran from 1644 to 1911.

The large green jade bowl, dating from 1769, is from the collection of Sir Charles Hardinge, a British collector of jades and hardstones. A Chinese poem is written inside.

The thieves also took a Dehua porcelain sculpture, with a cream white glaze, of seven fairies in a boat, which is 30cm (11.8ins) in both height and length.

A spokeswoman for Durham Police said the estimated value of both pieces was £1.8m. She said it was possible the items had been stolen to order for a foreign collector.

She said: "In particular we are interested in tracing three men who were seen to be taking a special interest in the cabinet which held these artefacts. Two are of Afro-Caribbean description and the other is white."

Museum curator Dr Craig Barclay said: "We are extremely upset to have fallen victim to such a serious crime.

"The two pieces are highly significant in that they are fine examples of artefacts from the Qing Dynasty in the mediums of porcelain and hard stone.

"We very much hope that police will be able to recover them and we urge anybody who may have any information about their whereabouts to contact the police immediately."

The museum will be closed until further notice.

Dr Barclay added: "We are very sorry that our customers have been affected by this incident and intend to reopen as soon as possible."

The university has been targeted by art thieves in the past, most notably when a rare copy Shakespeare's First Folio was taken in 1998.

County Durham antiques dealer Raymond Scott was later convicted of handling stolen goods. He was found dead in prison earlier this year.

Stolen Art Watch, Shannon Goose Loose In The Country Hoose

Shannon brothers sought over stolen antique books

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-17587048

Police want to speak to two brothers in connection with more than 100 stolen antique books and objects offered for sale at an auction in Gloucestershire.

William Knowle Shannon, 30, and Andrew Shannon, 46, whose last known addresses were in Dublin, were arrested and questioned in relation to the thefts.

They were given bail and told to return to a Gloucestershire police station in July 2011, but failed to appear.

Among the items is a Chinese porcelain goose valued at around £20,000.

The books offered for sale in South Cerney date between 1571 and 1962.

A number of them contain personal inscriptions, including one to the wife of Sir Winston Churchill.

There is also a bronze sculpture by Clodion and a green hardback book of poetry, The Wild Harp by Katherine Tynan.

Inside is written: "To Lady Glenconner."

The books and ornaments are believed to have been stolen from stately homes or possibly National Trust properties across England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales.

A Gloucestershire police spokesman said officers have been working to try to locate the men and they are now asking the public for their help to find them.

Back-story

Irishman jailed for stately home thefts

Published on Tuesday 12 May 2009 15:54

http://www.maltonmercury.co.uk/news/local/irishman-jailed-for-stately-home-thefts-1-919838

A SERIAL thief who travelled from Ireland to target English stately homes has been jailed after a caretaker at Yorkshire's Castle Howard saw him stuff two valuable watercolours into his laptop bag.

Andrew Shannon, 44, described as unemployed and illiterate, robbed six stately homes of antiques and paintings worth thousands of pounds on a "weekend spree" of stealing.

Shannon travelled from Dublin to target famous buildings across the country, including Blenheim Palace and Chatsworth House.

Together with an accomplice, he stole ornamental lions, porcelain vases, figurines, expensive books and even an antique walking stick from Belvoir Castle – which was identified as missing by the Duke of Rutland.

The four-day spree came to an end on a Sunday last August at Castle Howard, when a caretaker spotted Shannon lurking on a second floor of the home where the public are not allowed.

He claimed he was looking for a toilet, but staff grew suspicious and found two 800 paintings hidden in his laptop bag.

He also had a walkie talkie which he used to communicate with his accomplice and a Chinese ceramic lid – the other half of which was with the other thief, who cannot be named for legal reasons.

Police later traced Shannon's car and found a satellite navigation unit which had been programmed with six stately homes across the UK.

In court he admitted his part in six burglaries.

Jailing him for three years him at York Crown Court, Recorder Deborah Sherwin said: "Your purpose for travelling to England was to carry out this spree of theft.

"You travelled around the country visiting stately homes and stealing from them. It was pre-planned, you took advantage of these vulnerable homes that do not have the most sophisticated security measures in operation."

Prosecuting, David Brooke, said: "The two men visited a number of stately homes between July 30 and August 3 last year. But they were not innocent tourists visiting them for their beauty, this was a long weekend of crime."

Defending, Taryn Turner, said that Shannon had been claiming disability benefits after being seriously injured in a car crash in 1996. As a result he had suffered four heart attacks.

Speaking after the sentencing, Sgt Daniel Spence, of Malton Police Station, said: "Shannon is a prolific international travelling criminal with numerous convictions of a similar nature and his visit to the UK was with the sole intention of stealing works of art from stately homes and country houses.

"An accomplice in this case was detained by the Gardai in Dublin and has been dealt with in Ireland for handling stolen goods. The Crime Prosecution Service and the police are working towards attaining an arrest warrant and bringing him back to the UK."

He added: "It is a good result for Castle Howard and the police."

Stolen Art Watch, Cambridge Silver Thief Jailed, Will Serve Nine Months

Man jailed for selling Cambridge University's stolen silverware

A man has been jailed for two-and-a-half years after selling silverware stolen from a Cambridge college.

Scott Thomas, 37, of Mount Pleasant Walk, Cambridge, was jailed at Cambridge Crown Court for handling stolen goods and 17 other offences.

He was arrested after selling three silver altar pieces, taken from Corpus Christi College chapel in January, to an antiques dealer in the city.

Police believe three other pieces of stolen silverware were melted down.

The items, including an Everyday Chalice and Paten, Ciborium and Sunday (Knight) Chalice and Paten, were taken from the chapel while it was open to the public.

A college spokesman said their value was difficult to determine because of their age, but described them as irreplaceable.

Stolen Art Watch, Csontvary Elopes Leaving $1 million Headache

Hungary’s Most Valuable Painting Stolen

"Thieves stole Hungary’s most valuable painting, Szerelmesek találkozása (“Lovers Meeting”) by Tivadar Kosztka Csontváry, from a Hungarian private collector on March 15.

The painting, sold for Ft 230 million at a Budapest auction in December 2006, was taken from its owner’s home on Orom utca in the First District.

The thief or thieves made off with three other valuable paintings by Pál Szinyei Merse and László Mednyánszky, each worth tens of millions of forints.

The Csontváry painting was sold at an auction in Budapest in December 2006 at the record price of HUF 230 million (EUR 910,000 then, EUR 785,000 now). Police announced that this painting, along with other works painted by renowned Hungarian artists Pál Színyei Merse and László Mednyánszky, were stolen on March 15.

Péter Buzinkay of the National Office of Cultural Heritage told Hungarian Television that this painting by Csontváry is a protected work of art – the others stolen are protected but well-documented as they turned up at several auctions and exhibitions.

Csontváry’s ‘Rendez-vous of Lovers’ is believed to have been painted around 1902. It had not appeared at auctions – and even researchers were not aware of its whereabouts – for a long time. In 2006, it was put up for auction by a family whose members did not consider themselves as art collectors but were in possession of this work of art for six decades.

An unnamed art dealer interviewed by Magyar Hírlap suggested that the stolen Csontváry painting could have been taken out of the country a few hours after the robbery.

He said such high-priced paintings are stolen only by special order, and that everything is thoroughly organised before such a theft."

Stolen Art Watch, Nicholas Hoare Recommends Hot Art

Stolen Art Watch, Liverpool Lowry Handlers Jailed, Dey Doo Doe Don't Dey

'Highly trusted' Liverpool men jailed after £1.7m LS Lowry heist

Two "highly trusted" couriers for #1.7m LS Lowry masterpieces stolen from a collector's home while his infant daughter was held at knife-point have been jailed.

Unemployed Kevin Marlow, 29,and former boxer Gerard Starkey 50, claimed they were unaware of the Manchester painter and acted on orders from "sophisticated" criminals.

They were sentenced at Liverpool Crown Court to six and a half years and three years and three months respectively.

In May 2007 Lowry expert Ivan Aird was bound by cable ties by "muscle for hire" Casey Miller who tricked his way past Mr Aird's wife Louise by posing as a postman.

Miller - who "didn't know Lowry from Adam" - burst into the modern four-bedroomed property on Brackenwood Drive to carry out a frightening 7am raid on 3rd May.

Three masked men followed and a 10 inch knife was held to the throat of Mr Aird's two year-old daughter, Sabrina, while the walls were stripped of works worth #1.7m.

Among the 14 artworks stolen were The Viaduct - which was once hung above Sir Alec Guinness's fireplace - the Tanker Entering The Tyne and Lowry's palette and brushes.

At Liverpool Crown Court Judge Graham Morrow refused to believe Starkey's defence that he was approached by two unnamed men "out of the blue".

The two men introduced have not been named by the pair for "fear of reprisals".

These men are thought to have "orchestrated" the transportation of the artworks and ordered Kevin Marlow to approach Starkey for the use of his storage unit.

Organised Crime squad officers multi-force TITAN unit along with the Matrix team from Merseyside Police carried out the surveillance operation on Marlow after a tip-off.

The cocaine addict was spotted by police moving artworks by the Manchester artists from a lock-up in Bootle, Liverpool, owned by former boxer Graham Starkey in July 2011

They watched Marlow arrive at the home of Graham Starkey where he revealed he had been sent because the paintings needed to be moved.

Starkey then visited his lock-up on Northcliffe Road in Bootle and selected the paintings that were then taken to back to nearby Marlow in a Renault Megane.

The 29 year-old Marlow then drove to the address the third man in Halewood and was video taped unloading "a number of paintings with several men".

When the flat was raided police found a forgery of the Lowry masterpiece The Factory in an airing cupboard and The Viaduct and Tanker on the Tyne in the main bedroom.

But a further search of the flat in Halewood yielded 40,000 MDMA tablets worth more than #30,000 and #150,000 worth of amphetamine.

A 41 year-old man who was living at the property will be sentenced at a later date but told police he "knew what they were here for" when they raided the property.

The following day a warrant was executed on the unit owned by Starkey and over a dozen paintings including a palette and brushes used by Lowry and others by Arthur Delaney.

The paintings, sketches and utensils by Lowry were valued as being between #5,000 and #30,000 each and included The Market Street and The Surgery.

Mr Aird, who used to play marbles with LS Lowry at his Cheadle home, identified the artworks in August 2011 as being those stolen from him in the violent robbery.

Starkey and Marlow both denied knowing they were in possession of LS Lowry masterpieces or their huge worth.

But Judge Graham Morrow claimed they did not have to be "art experts" to know who Lowry was and his place in history.

He said: "I accept that none of you knew the circumstances surrounding the robbery of the paintings but you were highly trusted couriers and organisers in a hierarchy.

"The high level of profit is self evident.

"You both facilitated the delivery of the paintings so that they could be viewed by a potential buyer, including one man who was Eastern European.

"And you did that on several occassions and the artist's name had been mentioned to you so you were aware of the high-profile of these paintings."

The Viaduct and Tanker Entering The Tyne paintings were worth #750,000 and #600,000 but after being kept in a poor condition within Starkey's lock-up they were damaged by damp and mildew.

Some of the illicit cache hidden in the air-tight container were beneath "Army style blankets" but it is unknown how they got to Merseyside from Manchester.

The Viaduct has since been restored by Mr Aird, whose father George was friends with Laurence Stephen Lowry.

But Tanker Entering The Tyne may not be restored due to the "rabbit skin glue" used to preserve the oil painting after the renowned northern artist completed it in 1967.

Casey Miller was jailed indefinitely in 2009 and Manchester Crown Court heard he had a "shocking record of violence" but not the "wit" to orchestrate the raid on Mr Aird's home.

The art dealer welcomed a "happy ending" to an ordeal that left his family traumatised and him unwilling to keep any more valuable Lowry paintings at his Cheadle home.

He said: "I was powerless to do anything as I watched them put a knife to my daughter's throat, threatening to kill her demanding to know which were the most valuable paintings.

"My wife felt paranoid for a long time afterwards and wouldn't leave the window open upstairs. She always felt like she was being followed down the street.

"My daughter would run up and kick the door for months after the attack but thankfully those memories have faded and now she cannot remember what happened.

"It has been a happy ending today."

Added Mr Aird: "I grew up around Mr Lowry because he knew my father, George, and he taught my brother Phil many techniques.

"I had little idea as a boy how important he was. He was a visitor to the house and my memories from that time are of playing marbles with him and showing him my Action Man toys.

"We spent many a Saturday afternoon together and the paintings mean a lot to me, they have huge sentimental value."

Det Supt Jason Hudson from the Northwest Regional Organised Crime Unit (TITAN) said: "These three men were part of a shocking raid that has left mental scars on the family of Mr Aird.

"We still do not know how they came into possession of the LS Lowry paintings but it is clear that because of their high-profile they were struggling to get rid of them.

"A significant amount of drugs was found at the property where seven paintings and sketches were found.

"These people were more professional drug dealers than art thieves.

Stolen Art Watch, New York Launch For Hot Art, Jet-Lagged Josh Ready To Shock & Awe

Hot Art Hits New York

Joshua Knelman will debut his latest book titled Hot Art in New York on March 22, 2012. The investigative book documents the story of an art and antiques thief as well as the stories of law enforcement officials and attorneys who work to combat art and cultural property crime. The public is invited to the event, which will be held at the Flag Art Foundation located at 545 West 25th Street in Manhattan, between 10th and 11th Avenues at the Chelsea Arts Tower, between 6pm & 8pm

Globe & Mail Review:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/hot-art-by-joshua-knelman/article2186394/

Catalogued, admired and stolen

reviewed by iris nowell

An art thief named Paul (no last name, yet) provided Joshua Knelman with an overview of art theft during a three-year period beginning in early 2008 in Brighton, England. Paul’s thieving ways present a knowledgeable link to this shadowy subject that Knelman relates in the thief’s deadpan, quirky Brit humour spiked occasionally with crude street talk.

Paul learned his trade as a teenager in Brighton from “knockers.” Born poor in England’s vacation spot of the wealthy, he had only one chance to live like them, and that was to steal from them. Hence he “joined the fraternity of knockers,” petty thieves who knock on doors offering a pound or two for granny’s old glass beads, or a thief may con his way inside and snag a painting off the wall. He then scurries off to one of the numerous antique dealers on Brighton’s famous Lanes where a dealer buys the stolen loot and sells it to an unsuspecting collector.

Soon Paul was paying knockers to steal for him, which after 15 years ranked him as a “major handler of millions of dollars of stolen art and antiquities.”

In 2008, the art world was rocked by two spectacular heists, both in Switzerland, five days apart. On Feb. 6, two Pablo Picasso paintings valued at $10-million were stolen from a small Swiss art gallery. And on Feb. 11, a famous Impressionist museum in Zurich was hit by armed thieves who stormed off with four major works by Cezanne, Degas, Monet and Van Gogh.

Whether art is stolen by petty thugs or armed professionals, the cycle is consistent. The thief steals a painting, fences it to a dealer who sells it, and with that transaction the case goes cold. A stolen $6,000 Rolex watch is traceable, but a million-dollar painting is not; it has no serial number. One of the world’s most famous stolen works of art, a priceless Vermeer taken from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston in 1990, is still missing.

Knelman asked Paul if he had ever “stolen any famous paintings from a museum.” Paul laughed. “Do you think I’m a … moron?” The big stuff is what he called “headache art,” because it gives everyone involved a headache. It is easy to steal, but hard to unload. Paul dealt in the $10,000 art range, which does not attract attention from the police or the media.

In the 1980s, stolen art grew to an estimated $4-billion to $6-billion, the fourth-largest black market in the world after drugs, money laundering and weapons, according to Interpol and UNESCO. The Art Loss Register, founded in London in the 1990s, lists more than 100,000 works of stolen art. Only 2 per cent have been recovered. In 2001, the register listed as missing or stolen 659 Picassos, 397 Miros, 347 Chagalls, 313 Salvador Dalis, 216 Warhols and 199 Rembrandts. The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation’s National Stolen Art File is small by comparison, with only 6,500 listings.

Toronto lawyer Bonnie Czegledi became one of the early investigators into stolen art. In 2006, she said, “There are only a handful of detectives who have the experience to investigate art theft properly.” Yet countries worldwide were being looted of their art for markets in New York and London. FBI agent Robert K. Whitman estimated that art market in New York alone is worth an estimated $200-billion annually. “That’s everything – antique markets, art fairs, auction house revenue, gallery sales.” And he added, “That market is totally unregulated.”

Organized crime has entered the lucrative field of stolen art. Knelman covers Montreal’s Hells Angels’ involvement with stolen art in the style of a detective novel. He is at his best reporting work done by the FBI, Interpol, Scotland Yard, the RCMP and U.S. and Canadian city police forces in their efforts to recover stolen art. Too often, however, Knelman assumes a novelistic tone in which extraneous detail slows the pace. And, periodically, his narrative takes on the thug vernacular, which undermines his authority.

Disappointing for me, Knelman gives short shrift to historic stolen art and wartime plunder. There is nothing about a notorious shipment of looted treasures from Cuba that came to Toronto after the Cuban revolution. And, significantly, nothing about art that goes missing, lost or stolen when left with an art dealer, auction house or art patron at the time of the artist’s death.

A final note. Knelman lost contact for a time with Paul, a.k.a. Paul Walsh and Paul Hendry. Sure enough, he had been nicked. Knelman last saw him when he was on parole, writing a blog, cracking jokes, driving a Black S55 AMG Mercedes – not too inconvenienced by his electronic anklet.

Iris Nowell is author of three art books, most recently Painters Eleven: The Wild Ones of Canadian Art.