Stolen Art Watch, Remmington Ring Returned, Coming Through The Rye !!!

Police recover Remington ring stolen from museum

http://acn.liveauctioneers.com/index.php/features/crime-and-litigation/4793-police-recover-remington-ring-stolen-from-museum

OGDENSBURG, NY (ACNI) - Auction Central News has just been notified by the curator of the Frederic Remington Art Museum that the one-carat Tiffany & Co. diamond engagement ring discovered missing from their collection on June 6 has been recovered.

"We were elated to learn that the ring has been found thanks to the diligence of the Ogdensburg Police Department’s Detective Sergeant Harry McCarthy who moved quickly to secure its recovery and a confession," said Curator Laura A. Foster. "While the ring is not extremely valuable as a generic 19th-century artifact, it is invaluable to the museum as a memento of the Remington legacy."

The ring had been given by American artist Frederic Remington to his fiancée Eva Caten more than a century ago. The couple wed on Oct. 1, 1884.

"At the museum we were heartbroken when the ring went missing, and our deepest thanks goes out to the Ogdensburg Police for its quick action," said Foster.

The Frederic Remington Art Museum is located at 303 Washington Street, Ogdensburg, NY 13669. The museum is dedicated to collecting, exhibiting, preserving and interpreting the art and archives of Frederic Remington, and contains an unmatched collection of his works. The museum is open May 15-Oct. 15, Monday-Saturday, 10 am to 5 pm; and Sunday, 1 to 5 pm . From Oct. 16-May 14, the museum is open Wednesday-Saturday, 11 am to 5 pm; and Sunday, 1 to 5 pm.

1902 Coming Through the Rye

This 1902 bronze was described by the artist as “four cowboys on running horses…men shooting pistols and shouting.” In selecting the subject of his eighth bronze, Remington revisited an image he had twice earlier depicted in an illustration published in Century Magazine and several others around that time. The illustration vividly depicted recklessly spirited cowhands coming into town for a weekend of revel rousing and fun.
This was a fine example of a three dimensional study of western sculpture. Remington’s technical virtuoso was truly demonstrated in this piece more than any to date, with only six of the sixteen hooves touching the ground. This may not have always been Remington’s idea to have six of the hooves on the ground, as in an original picture of the base sketch it appeared that Remington had intended to have five hooves down and eleven in the air. Later Remington wrote the founder Riccardo Bertelli and told of the changes that were made. The casting of this piece was closely overseen by Remington, (later related by people in the workshop) this was common for his larger pieces. The sculptures numbered nine through fifteen were weaker in appearance than that of previous pieces. Also, though careful examination, experts have noticed that the signature on number nine is uncharacteristically sharper than its predecessors, indicating the piece had been re-worked, strengthened and made without a foundry marking. This may indicate that any piece after that number was produced by artisans at the foundry.
To Remington’s delight this piece was one of the only two purchased in the entire 1905 by the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington D.C. Not surprisingly, this sculpture has remained one of the most popular and sought after pieces to date, both in the eyes of the public and private collectors alike.

Antique thief contrite
REMINGTON RING: Man twice tried to return it, LaVarnway says

OGDENSBURG — The man accused of stealing an antique gold ring from the Frederic Remington Art Museum last month tried twice to return it before he was arrested on Monday, according to Edward A. LaVarnway, museum executive director.

Blake R. Peabody, 24, of 814 S. Water St., a former part-time maintenance employee at the 303 Washington St. museum, allegedly stole the single-carat, 19th-century ring May 27. On two occasions a week later, while at work June 2 and 3, he attempted to put it back in the same glass display case from which it was removed, Mr. LaVarnway said.

Mr. Peabody is facing a charge of felony fourth-degree grand larceny.

Mr. LaVarnway said Tuesday that Mr. Peabody told him of his attempts to return the ring and his motivation for doing so.


"He told me after he took the ring that he'd made a big mistake," Mr. LaVarnway said. "He was very remorseful."

The ring was reported missing June 6. The next day, Mr. Peabody was fired from his St. Lawrence County Department of Social Services Workfare program-arranged job after working at the museum for a month. Mr. LaVarnway said the dismissal was for missing too many days of work, not suspicion over the stolen ring.

Why Mr. Peabody was unable to put the ring back into the display case may have been a matter of ill timing. His working hours were 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and, according to Mr. LaVarnway, one of his chores was cleaning the display cases.

Mr. LaVarnway said he thought Mr. Peabody never managed to find time enough alone to put the ring back.

The ring was recovered at Mr. Peabody's home Friday when Ogdensburg police went there, and he confessed to taking it. But more time passed until he was charged because Laura A. Foster, museum curator, was not available to officially identify the ring until Monday morning. Mr. Peabody was arrested an hour after its identity was confirmed.

Mr. LaVarnway said Tuesday that Ogdensburg Police Detective Sgt. Harry J. McCarthy brought the ring to him at the museum Friday. But, without the benefit of a file photograph of it for verification, the executive director was uncomfortable about making a positive identification.

"I couldn't officially identify it," Mr. LaVarnway said. "We needed a curator to do that."

Mr. McCarthy said Tuesday that no arrest was possible until the ring was officially identified. He also said police didn't believe Mr. Peabody was a flight risk.

"He was cooperative," Mr. McCarthy said. "He has three small kids."

On Monday, Mr. Peabody pleaded not guilty in City Court before Judge William R. Small and was released to the supervision of probation. He will be back in court June 21 and will be represented by the St. Lawrence County public defender's office.

Police have the ring and will return it to the museum after Mr. Peabody's legal counsel with the public defender's office has an opportunity to have it appraised. Police have given it a minimum retail value of $2,200. The museum regards it as invaluable because of its having been purchased in 1884 by the late sculptor and illustrator Frederic S. Remington as an engagement ring for his wife, Eva.

Stolen Art Watch, Summer, Time, Diamonds

Thieves escape with £1 million pounds worth of jewellery after burglary in Leatherhead

http://www.yourlocalguardian.co.uk/news/local/epsomnews/9082725.Thieves_escape_with___1_million_pounds_worth_of_jewellery/?ref=ec

Thieves have escaped with £1 million pounds worth of jewellery and cash after a burglary in Leatherhead.

A catalogue of highly valuable and sentimental items were taken from the home, the location of which has not been released for security reasons, sometime between 1.30pm and 11pm on Sunday, June 12. A pair of chandelier platinum diamond earrings and a five carat diamond platinum ring worth £140,000, a vintage gold Rolex man’s watch with a thin gold strap and gold face, worth around £50,000, a pair of round stud two carat diamond earrings which match the stolen ring, worth around £10,000, and a £6,000 gold Cartier chain and pendant were among the items taken from the house.

A number of diamond rings, worth several thousand pounds each, were also taken including one in the shape of a panther and one set with a ruby, along with a further pair of expensive earrings.

Many of the items of jewellery were unbranded and bought from private jewellers in recent years.

Burglars also stole a number of silver and gold coins in red boxes which would be easily identifiable to the owners, several pairs of men’s designer jeans and a large amount of foreign currency and sterling.

A dark coloured Ford Fiesta with five men inside was seen driving around the Leatherhead area at the time of the burglary.

An investigation is currently underway to determine how the thieves gained entry to the home.

Detective Inspector Dave Cooper said: “This type of burglary is incredibly rare, and we believe the victims were specifically targeted.

“The jewellery is hugely valuable and would be easily identifiable to the owner.

“I am appealing to members of the public to come forward with any information which could help us catch the person or people responsible and reunite the owners with their possessions.

“I also am appealing to jewellers, pawn shops, auction houses and even the man down the pub, if you are offered beautiful, expensive diamond, gold and platinum jewellery at a bargain price, then think twice, as there is a chance it came from this burglary.”

Collection of 63 rare watches stolen in daytime burglary in Barnes

http://www.yourlocalguardian.co.uk/news/local/richmondnews/9065104.Thieves_make_off_with_rare_collection_watches_in_daytime_burglary/

Rare watches worth tens of thousands of pounds have been stolen in a daytime burglary.

Timepieces taken from the Barnes house included a gold-plated Fulgor alarm watch, of which only 50 have been made, a 1956 Rolex Precision and a very rare 1970 Stowa Seatime with a green dial.

Thieves also made off with a 1975 Certina 18k gold watch, which home owner Michael Stuffler, who has been collecting watches for 25 years, inherited from his father.

Police were called at about noon to the Mr Stuffler's home in Berkeley Road, after he returned on May 14 to find two men inside his house. It is believed they broke in through the rear doors.

A total of 63 designer watches and a limited edition Gucci Sloaney bag were also taken by the men, who made their getaway on a scooter stolen during a burglary in April.

Mr Stuffler said: "I have been collecting watches for 25 years which is a long time.

"There have been some really rare pieces and some with sentimental value.

"Two of the watches were given to me by my father who died two years ago and there was one which I bought for my wife when we got married 26 years ago."

The devastated watch collector said he had been trawling internet sites Ebay and Gumtree to see if he could find any of his stolen watches for sale.

The news of the theft was discussed on the internet site Rolex Forums, where watch enthusiasts expressed their sympathies.

One message by forum writer Ally said: “This is terrible. I hope they catch whoever’s done this. It’s quite a collection.”

While watch-fan Numismatist wrote: “This is really sad. I hope it all works out. It’s not so much the watches, it’s all the care and time taken to amass the collections and all the energy put into that.”

One of the burglars was about 6ft and slim, while the second was 5ft 7in and stocky.

Both were wearing black motorcycle helmets and dark clothing and escaped on a grey Aprilia scooter with the registration RX55 XEU, which had been reported stolen from Well Lane, East Sheen, on April 27.

Detective Constable Peter Duke, of Richmond CID, said: “The stolen items are distinctive and particularly identifiable. I am also keen for information relating to the stolen scooter.

Stolen Art Watch, Picasso Electrician and Wife Charged With Theft !!

Picasso Works Were Stolen Couple Charged

$80m In Lost Art May Be Returned To Picasso Family

As reported last December that 271 undocumented works by Pablo Picasso estimated to be worth at least €60 million (£50 million) were discovered in the South of France. Pierre Le Guennec, a retired French electrician and his wife revealed that the paintings drawings and prints, a gift from the artist, had been stored in a garage for over 30 years. The former security system installer, who once worked for Picasso, in his home on the French Riviera, claims that the treasure trove was a gift to him from Madam Jacqueline Picasso, with the knowledge of the master. The estate has other thoughts and the works were seized, pending a lengthily court battle.

The couple have now been arrested and charged with handling stolen goods and face up to 10 years in prison if convicted of the crime.The mystery began when Claude Picasso,son of the artist and head of the foundation named after his father received a letter from a man who said he owned original Picasso pieces and wanted to have them verified for authenticity.Picasso convinced the man to bring the collection to Paris, saying he would be unable to verify it from photographs. The man arrived by car with the paintings in a suitcase and laid them out on a table.“I felt a great surprise, naturally, lots of emotion at the discovery of pieces with which we were not familiar. But also a deep disturbance,” he told French daily Liberation. “Many of these pieces were not dated, which means they never should have left the studio.” The cache, dating from the artist's most creative period from 1900 to 1932, includes previously undocumented notebooks, sketches, plus nine Cubist collages said to be worth €40 million. (£34 million)

Claude Picasso stated, 'To give away such a large quantity, that's unheard-of. It doesn't hold water,' Catherine Bonnici, clerk to the judges at Grasse Criminal Court, confirmed that the Le Guennecs would appear in court later this month. ‘All of this happened nearly 40 years ago, and key witnesses, including Picasso and his wife, are now dead. Technically we are dealing with a maximum prison sentence of 10 years, but it’s going to be a very difficult case to prove.’ Picasso produced more than 100,000 works of art during his long career, but hundreds have been listed as missing, either because they were misplaced, given away or stolen. The estate is now one of the most tightly controlled art industries in the world.

Couple Charged with Stealing 271 Picasso Paintings

A French couple, aged 71, has been charged with stealing 271 Picasso paintings. The paintings were found in the couple's garage and were only found because the couple actually contacted the Picasso estate to get the painting evaluated for authenticity.

It appears that not all of the paintings were stolen, as the couple told police that Picasso and his wife, Jacqueline, gave him the paintings while Picasso was still alive. But there were Picasso paintings found that are known to be stolen from another location.

It sounds like the couple didn't know that some of these paintings were stolen when they acquired them, otherwise why would they contact the estate to verify their authenticity? Unless, due to their age, they had forgotten that they had stolen the paintings or received them illegally. Either way, it will be nice to see the paintings go to the right owner, and the rest be displayed the way they should be for the world to see.

The plot thickened with the addition of a document from 1983 provided by the Picasso Administration, ten years after the supposed "gifts," which proved that Picasso's wife Jacqueline had given 540,000 francs (about 150,000 EUR today) to Le Guennec. The Le Guennecs had not disclosed this gift to investigators when it was discovered.

In addition, authorities have expanded their investigation of Le Guennec's late cousin Maurice Bresnu, Picasso's last driver, who himself had possessed over a hundred of his employer's works. Police seized several works from a recent sale of Bresnu's collection in early June. Le Monde reports that authorities have found "no link" between the cases so far, but notes the unusual connection.

Stolen Art Watch, Detectives Crack Case With Help From Art Dealer !!

Southold detectives honored for cracking art theft case

http://suffolktimes.timesreview.com/2011/06/14276/southold-detectives-honored-for-cracking-art-theft-case/

Two Southold Town Police detectives who were the driving force behind cracking a series of art burglaries on the East End were given Top Cop awards by the Police Reserves of Suffolk County earlier this month.

Detectives Joseph Conway, Jr. and Edward Grathwohl began working on the case in late January, when a caretaker for a Southold home reported that $50,000 worth of oil paintings, lithographs and household furnishings were stolen from the property.

Detective Conway, who was on duty when the call came in, was initially assigned to the case, and Detective Grathwohl joined the investigation in April, after an art dealer in Southold whom he knew reported that he had purchased art but later became suspicious of the seller and learned from his contacts in the art world that the works may have been stolen.

After Detective Grathwohl made contact with the art dealer, he and Mr. Conway arranged a phone call and then a meeting in Southold Town between the dealer and the suspect, leading to the arrest of Angel Palencia, 24, of Medford. Mr. Palencia was later indicted on eight felony counts of burglary in the second degree.

The Southold detectives were assisted in their efforts by detectives from Southampton and East Hampton villages and Shelter Island, where other pieces of art were reported stolen, and by investigators from the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office.

“It was definitely their tenacity that brought this to a successful conclusion. It was a combined effort from the beginning, but their detective work ended up bringing it to a head,” said Southold Police Captain Martin Flatley this week of detectives Conway and Grathwohl. “It was not just the arrest, but they stayed with it until they collected as much of the artwork and property as they could. It’s very rare that you can recover that much merchandise.”

After Mr. Palencia’s arrest and confession on April 6, the officers found much of the stolen merchandise at Mr. Palencia’s home, and the next day recovered several other pieces of art at pawn shops in Nassau County. In total, Mr. Palencia is estimated to have stolen about $650,000 worth of art.

Mr. Palencia, an undocumented worker, had worked as a carpenter and a painter on the East End. While he claimed to have been working alone, District Attorney Tom Spota said in April that it was likely he had help gaining access to the houses. There was no sign of forced entry in any of the burglaries, despite the fact that the houses were locked and their alarms were set.

Southold Police Chief Carlisle Cochran nominated the detectives for the awards, which were given out at a dinner sponsored by the Police Reserves, a group of private citizens who support police efforts, on June 1.

Stolen Art Watch, Sculpture Theft, CCTV, BBC !!!

Sculpture thefts appeal to go nationwide on BBC

COPS will make a TV appeal for information after two bronze sculptures were snatched from an art gallery

The thief struck twice over a three-year period and was only prevented from stealing the last time after staff recognised him and he fled.

Ulverston Sergeant Sara Seath will be talking to Rav Wilding on the new Crimewatch Roadshow at 9.15am next Thursday as they appeal for help from UK viewers to trace the culprit.

During the BBC1 show, CCTV footage will be shown of a man police would like to speak to in connection with the thefts – which have a combined value of £4,100 – from the Old Courthouse Gallery.

Sgt Seath explained how the first incident took place in May 2008, when a man entered the gallery with the appearance of being a genuine customer.

He went upstairs and removed the sculpture from the display, before leaving the premises.

The bronze sculpture is by British-based artist Peter Beard and is worth at least £1,500.

Despite extensive enquiries at the time with CCTV footage, no suspect was identified.

On March 17 this year the same man entered the galley in the company of a female.

They again gave the appearance of being genuine customers, and engaged the shop assistant in conversation.

When the assistant was distracted by another customer, the man removed another bronze sculpture by the same artist, valued at £2,600, and placed it in the female’s bag.

Both then left the store.

The male is described as being in his 40s to 50s and white. He was wearing a dark-coloured jacket, blue denim jeans and a navy beanie hat.

The woman was described as slim, 30 to 35 years old, wearing a dark-coloured jacket, blue denim jeans and black Converse shoes.

She had collar length dark brown curly hair.

On Sunday May 8 at 3.55pm, the man again went into the gallery, but quickly left when he realised staff in the gallery had recognised him.

Despite police attending the scene quickly, the man was not found in the area.

Mangeress of the Market Place gallery, Malgosia Michalska, said: “The incident in March happened on the main floor of the gallery.

“The sculpture was stolen from a high window shelf. There were two person involved, male and a female.

“The male lifted the sculpture down and placed it into a shoulder bag belonging to the female.

“After the theft, they both chatted with the member of staff for a little while, trying to distract her and the colleague downstairs of noticing the theft immediately.”

Sgt Seath, who is heading up the investigation, said: “Despite circulating the image to local shops and galleries within the local area, the suspects haven’t been identified, which leads us to believe that the offenders may be from outside of Cumbria.

“The male suspect has clearly targeted the premises on two occasions three years apart, and has had a further likely attempt thwarted due to the staff recognising him.

Stolen Art Watch, Art Heist Paramilitary Style !!

20 Works Of Art Stolen From Home Of Painter Carlos Alonso

She was with her family. They were beaten and threatened for two hours. The band wore gloves and handies. They took works of other artists, but none of the victim. The haul would be around $ 250,000. Carlos Alonso was assaulted by 5 masked

BY MARTA Plati -

"I just join a huge community: those harassed, robbed and fondled that in our country, unfortunately is a growing community" Clarin said yesterday, with great sadness, Carlos Alonso, one of the most important living painters of Argentina who, on Tuesday night, was beaten and psychologically tortured with her family, at his home in Unquillo, 35 miles northwest of the city of Cordoba.

In a commando-style assault, five masked robbers, wearing gloves, weapons and communication handies, took twenty works of art from the artist's private collection, among which include a drawing of Enea Spilimbergo Lino, who was his teacher and Alonso, who chose to live in Unquillo; valuable works by Antonio Berni, Enrique Policastro, Pedro Pont Vergés and a lithograph of Edvard Munch, Norwegian author of "The Scream", among others.

But, strangely, did not steal anything from the victim.At one point raised a picture of the artist, but backtracked on an order received by handy. Considered a major gallery for Clarín that "the spoils to the $ 250,000 amount."

"We gave all the impression that it was a theft to order. Just joined, one of them pointed a gun at his head and said, 'We came to Buenos Aires for you. We know who you are. Tell us where the Spilimbergo '. "

The two hours of terror for Alonso began about nine o'clock at night. The teacher had dinner with Teresa, his wife, Ludovico, one of his sons and a friend of his. Paul, the son who lives in the family house, was returning from a trip.

"It seems that some jumped the perimeter fence, the property has 5 acres on a hill in the heart of Unquillo-entered the house of home and waited for someone to come out for the rest of the group from entering a pickup truck, rebuilt Paul before Clarín.

Alonso himself continued the story: "Going to Ludovico, who had just fired, and held at gunpoint.

We threw on the floor of living upside down.

We tied up and threatened us shouting. Buenos Aires and Cordoba hear tunes, so we thought it was a mixed band. Then took me to my study, which was the Spilimbergo.

I was tied to a chair and began to stack boxes like bricks, "he told the artist.

Then added: "They looked like thugs.

So neglected was that I complained when they broke the glass of Spilimbergo o: could have damaged it is a portrait on paper that made a girl from a nearby town who was the daughter of German and his name was Marlene Dietrich. "

The robbers were asking for each frame Alonso taking and its value.

Do you hit?Yes, I was punched in the head to tell them where was the silver. That violence was rising. I took where we had about $ 3 000 and 2 000 pesos. They were taken, of course.

Then he was blindfolded with a scarf, "I said, 'Old Man, go to find the medicine because you carry with us." And then, "Or do you prefer us to get your son?".

- What did you do then?(Alonso has a daughter disappeared during the military dictatorship).

In those moments of terror one only thinks in life. Teresa that flutter, that my child is not removed, that the types do not lead us, not to shoot ...

The band stirred every room in the big house: to put upside down the bed. Suddenly, "the less he spoke, it seemed the head and knew something about art, said 'we go'. They went out all at once. They took my son's car (a Peugeot 307 which was abandoned the next morning in the neighborhood of Villa Adela de Córdoba), and also heard the sound of a truck. "

According to Alonso, "all these works are not easy to sell, except to collectors. I clarify that I am not. All exchanges are fruits and gifts of colleagues, teachers and friends. "

Do you suspect someone?We suspect some people who visited the house, some antique, someone who came to offer some wood carving ...

Overwhelmed, but wielding the subtle humor that at 82 years has not lost, the artist was fired with an irony: "No, not steal any of my works, which certainly is disappointing."

Stolen Art Watch, We've Had The Cowboys, Now For The Indians !!

The crime history of India
http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/the-crime-historyindia/438632/

Not many people who have seen Raja Ravi Varma’s masterpieces like “Mohini”, which depicts a lady on a swing, and “Dattatreya” and “Riddhi Siddhi”, which portray Ganesha with his consorts, at Delhi’s National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA) know that these prized works of art were nearly lost forever. About nine registered 19th century paintings by the artist from Kerala who died in 1906 were recovered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in 2003 after a raid in Delhi. After the recovery, the paintings were initially kept with CBI but later given to NGMA where, it was felt, they belonged. What is left with CBI now is images of those paintings which the bureau has proudly displayed in its newly-inaugurated gallery along with the story of how the agency has proved to be the “savior of national heritage”.

The CBI gallery, located on the sixth floor of the bureau’s swanky new 11-storey headquarters, has many other stories to tell and treasures to show. Among them is Kal Bhairav, the 18th century stone artifact featuring a male head with curly hair. This, too, was stolen before CBI recovered it in 2009. The image of an 18th century nutcracker in metal depicting a horse head with big open eyes and a pair of teeth on the upper and lower jaws also adorns the gallery wall. This artifact was recovered from Delhi. Another 19th century antique, a copper water jug with an elephant, was seized in 2005. The originals, like several other seized antiques, are now at the CBI museum in Ghaziabad. A few antiques are also under lock and key at the CBI maalkhana (strong room).

Antiques smuggling, though illegal, is big business in India. Over the years, CBI has recovered hundreds of paintings and ancient stone and metal sculptures. Many of these treasures, often stolen from remote temples in the hills, land up in warehouses in Delhi and Gurgaon, to be smuggled out or illegally auctioned. In 1980, 47 antiques were seized from Delhi. In 2008, the sculpture of Dancing Ganesha was recovered from a warehouse in Delhi from where it was to be exported illegally.

“Another antique stone sculpture seized in 1990 had been put up by the accused on the Internet for sale,” recalls Dharini Mishra, chief information officer, CBI. That was 20 years ago and the man probably didn’t realise that investigating agencies — CBI has a dedicated Antiques Wing to which the police turn when a theft of significant value is reported — had also started tracking thefts on the Internet.

“Many of these recoveries were made during the tenure of Archana Ramasundaram, the first woman joint director in the CBI,” says press information officer R K Gaur who was part of the team that researched such recoveries made by the bureau. Ramasundaram is also part of CBI’s gallery in a section titled “Down Memory Lane” where black and white pictures of some landmark events, like the inauguration of CBI academy in 1996 and the passing out parade of the first batch, are displayed.

Recovered antiques form but one part of the gallery, the walls of which also speak of CBI’s history, its landmark cases and its memorable moments. The first picture to greet a visitor is that of Khan Qurban Ali who headed the organisation, which was then called Special Police Establishment, from 1941 to 1947.

The first big case which the bureau has displayed in the gallery is that of the brutal murder of Deendayal Upadhyaya in 1968. The president of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh — now the Bharatiya Janata Party — was murdered while travelling by the Sealdah-Pathankot Express. His body was found close to an electric pole near the tracks at the Mughalsarai railway station by a leverman. Chilling images of the Bhagalpur blindings in Bihar where the police blinded 31 undertrials by pouring acid into their eyes, the funeral procession of the murdered Harcharan Singh Longowal in 1985 and the trail of destruction left by the Bombay blasts form another part of the gallery. The iconic image of armed troops sitting in jeeps at some distance from the hijacked IC-814 aircraft leads into a brief history of the 1999 Kandahar hijacking.

But it’s the white-collar crimes and scams that occupy a major portion of the gallery where cases handled by CBI are displayed. There’s the Harshad Mehta case of 1991, the fodder scam of 1996 in which Lalu Prasad was named, the DDA Scam of 2002-03, the Stamp Paper Scam of 2004, and the more recent Satyam Scam of 2009. One entire wall is reserved for the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, from the blast to the charge sheet and the conviction.

The agency also has an “Interpol” section which gives a glimpse into how CBI coordinates with international investigating agencies. “We are linked to 188 countries across the world through a secret communication network called I-24/7. It allows us to send messages and top secret information to all these countries simultaneously at the click of a button,” says N S Kharayat, assistant director (Interpol), Narcotics Control Bureau.

The gallery was inaugurated on April 30. “It is open to visitors coming to the CBI headquarters,” says information officer Gaur sitting down to write in a register. “Officially, you are the first visitors.”

Stolen Art Watch, Rhino Horn, Life Before Viagra !!

Bidders in battle to buy a rhino head

A STUFFED rhinoceros head caused a bidding war amongst Chinese herbalists at a Northumberland auction house.

The rhino head eventually sold for £35,000 when Alnwick auctioneer Jim Railton put it under the hammer on Saturday.

It was sold at the same auction in which a £100 painting hung in a North farmhouse for 50 years fetched £95,000.

Mr Railton had been concerned that the sale of the 19th century head – shot by an ancestor of a well-known, titled, local family – could put him on the wrong side of the law again.

Last year he was prosecuted for advertising an antique chest of drawers which contained a collection of birds’ eggs. He was fined for a breach of wildlife laws intended to protect birds, despite the eggs being decades old.

The auctioneer said he fully supports the worldwide ban on hunting rhinos and the labyrinth of laws and measures designed to protect such endangered species from extinction by poachers.

But last week Defra – the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs – gave the sale the all-clear.

Mr Railton explained: “Safari killing sprees carried out by the Victorians, which included this rhino, would certainly not be condoned today, but as a rule of thumb if it can be proved that the animal was killed and the head mounted before 1947 then you can legally sell such trophies.

“There has, however, been growing speculation within the antiques trade over the past few weeks that current legislation is to be tightened up throughout the EU and that had put me on the horns of a dilemma until Defra said the sale was lawful.

“At the sale on Saturday we had several Chinese telephone bidders battling it out.

“There was a lot of curiosity about the stuffed head and people in the saleroom were caught up in the excitement of the telephone bids. The sale went out live on the internet and I have no doubt there was a large Chinese contingent keeping a close eye on just what was happening and what price it fetched.

“No doubt now the horns will now go to make up some wonderful medicinal concoctions that allegedly cure anything from gout to the perfect lift for an aging libido.”

Also under the auctioneer’s hammer was a Victorian painting that has hung in a the dining room of a Northern farmhouse for almost 50 years and which fetched £95,000.

The oil on canvas, which depicts a view of Liverpool docks, was bought for just £100 in the 1960s.

John Atkinson Grimshaw’s atmospheric work shows figures and carriages on the cobbled dock, moored sailing ships in the background and a row of gas-lit shop fronts in the moonlight.

The detail is such that a clock outside one of the shops shows the time at 7pm.

Mr Railton said: “There was a lot of interest in the painting. It just shows people don’t always know the value of what is hanging on their wall.”

Horns stolen from stuffed rhinos at five museums

BERLIN — Thieves have wrenched the horns off stuffed rhinoceroses in at least five European museums in the past few days, apparently with an eye to grinding up the horns to make an Asian potency remedy.

Police in the German town of Bamberg and the Italian city of Florence disclosed the latest two thefts Thursday.

The horns apparently had a black- market value of tens of thousands of dollars. Trade in horn is illegal under world nature protection treaties. Traditional Chinese medicine credits horn dust with curative powers. Some people also believe the dust is an aphrodisiac.

Bamberg's Natural History Museum , a museum of hunting at Gifhorn, Germany, and Hamburg's zoology museum all reported thefts, as did the Florence Natural History Museum.

The Daily Telegraph in London reported a similar theft at the Haslemere Educational Museum in England.

Thieves target museum for rhino head A THEFT of a rhino head from a museum in Surrey is thought to have been motivated by the hugely valuable trade in rhino horn. Nothing else was taken by burglars who broke into the Educational Museum in Haslemere, early on May 27 before fleeing after setting off an alarm. Surrey police are investigating whether the gang could have stolen the head in order to remove its horns and sell them for use in alternative medicines. Meanwhile auctioneers and dealers are urged to keep an eye out for the head, in case it turns up in a saleroom or is offered to a gallery. The rhino was on display in the mammal collection which houses 250 specimens mostly from England and Africa. It had been an exhibit at the museum since 1929. Under new CITES guidelines published in February, DEFRA no longer recognise mounted rhino horn trophies as 'worked' items and they are illegal to sell. Sections of head with horn(s) attached (e.g. such as a pair of horns joined by a section of skin/skull) are also not considered to meet the worked definition, but full taxidermied heads with horn(s) attached, such as this one, are considered to meet the 'worked' definition and can be sold. That is why whole heads are attractive to thieves, as proved to be the case at Essex auction house Sworders on February 21, when a moth-eaten head of an African black rhino, due to be sold the next day, was stolen in a raid. It had been estimated at £20,000-30,000.

Man jailed over rare Harry Potter book theft

A man has been jailed after he admitted stealing a limited first edition Harry Potter book from an art gallery.

Kevin McGirr, 40, had been charged with the theft of the rare copy of Harry Potter and The Philosopher's Stone.

The book, worth about £6,000, went missing from the Creative Art Gallery in Woodstock, Oxfordshire, in October.

McGirr, of Oxford Road, Kidlington, was jailed for six weeks after changing his plea to guilty at Banbury Magistrates' Court earlier.

He was also ordered to pay compensation of £250, and £400 in legal costs.

The JK Rowling book was found wrapped in a plastic bag outside a Boots store in Abingdon on 15 November.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, the first novel in the series, was first published in 1997.

It was later made into a feature film starring Daniel Radcliffe as the young wizard.

Antiques stolen in £10,000 Radwinter church raid

POLICE are appealing for witnesses and information after a £10,000 burglary at St Mary’s Church in Radwinter.

Thieves smashed a stained glass window to get into the church in Walden Road between noon on May 9 and 9.30am on May 11.

They stole two oak tables and a chair, two oak chests, several sets of candelabra and other antique items.

Centre thieves strike as silver price soars

THE day after bullion prices peaked, thieves broke into an antiques centre in Cardiff and escaped with a haul of antique silver valued at thousands of pounds. Burglars scaled a 10ft fence and smashed a ground-floor window to break into the Pumping Station on Penarth Road, Leckwith, Cardiff, on the afternoon of Wednesday, April 27. As dealers at the Pumping Station examine their stock to establish what exactly has been stolen, detectives are urging antiques dealers to exercise vigilence. While prices fell back last week, the high bullion price levels (that peaked the day before the theft at £30 an ounce for scrap silver) may have contributed to the timing of the crime. PC Mike Brinkworth from Cardiff Bay Police Station said: "We are keen to get a message out to the community as soon as possible, particularly to any antique dealers who might be offered these items for sale." Generally high scrap metal prices have also been linked to the theft of bronze garden statuary and sculpture in recent years

Stolen Art Watch, Down The Hatch !!

Collectors and auction houses warned after theft of £1m vintage wine

The Metropolitan police are appealing for information after vintage wine worth up to £1 million was stolen from a warehouse in Bethnal Green in east London.

A worker at the warehouse, located under railway arches in Cambridge Heath Road, dicovered the break-in on Sunday morning.

Thieves broke through a padlock on the main gates and bent a shutter door to gain access to the warehouse, having disabled alarms and CCTV cameras.

The raiders used a forklift to fill pallets with about 400 cases of mostly vintage wine, and are belived to have used three vehicles to make off following the theft — two white transit-style vans and a lorry with a brown cab and blue sides.

Investigating officer Detective Constable Ash Rossiter said: “The stolen stock is rare and valuable. We would ask anyone with information or who is offered these goods for sale to contact us as soon as possible.

“It may be the aim of those who have stolen it to try to sell it to private collectors or auction houses.”

Some of the wine stolen was owned by private investors, one of whom has offered a £5,000 reward for the return of some of the stolen stock.

Two men aged were arrested yesterday, Wednesday May 25, on suspicion of burglary.

German Lawyers in the Frame
This theft is a mystery, still: in July 2008, eight images and a vase in the value of one million euros from the lamp Bank may disappeared. Twice already, wrong helpers wanted to return the works. But that was so far no light in the dark. The second case comes shortly before the District Court.

Shortly after the audacious coup, two Düsseldorfer lawyers had declared that they had contact with a man who knows where the stolen paintings and the vase. He showed photos of the pictures. To prove that the recorded after the theft, a current newspaper be there shown. The man demanded 300,000 euros for a return of the images. The lawyers offered as a mediator, called 8961 Euro fee for this.

The Bank gave up the dubious business, went to the police. The determined against the lawyers, the man who allegedly owned the images, and a middleman. The investigation against them were dropped, his exact involvement was not determined. The case against one of the lawyers ended with a circulation of money of EUR 18 000. His staff received an evidences, is sentenced to six months on probation. There will be a process only for the man with the photos. Whether he actually knows where the stolen images are, then maybe shows is on 27 July.

Still, the case against a 44-Jährigen, which should also have tried to make money from the theft is open. According to the indictment, he has requested EUR 10 000 for this that he will lead the Bank to the images. He denies that. The investigators now await feedback from France. There, a friend of 44-Jährigen should be asked whether he made the fraudulent phone call.

Stolen Art Watch, Giorgio Morandi, Italian Cops Were Watching, Faked Car Stop !!

The widow and the monte-en-l'air

A band of thieves was arrested in Italy in possession of a fabulous booty: a dozen paintings by masters stolen at a rich Monegasque resident.

The arrest is worthy of a scene of worship of the film the adventure, it is the adventure. Lino Ventura and Aldo Maccione, is as random a banal traffic that the criminals of history are on the take. None of the two had however the presence of mind to exclaim: " I've stolen the car! " in tribute to the film or to justify the strange loading that authorities have found in their vehicle. Motorists however found another excuse tasty, although somewhat credible.

May 28, the Italian carabinieri stop the car on the outskirts of the city of Monza, near Milan. On board, two 46 men and 50 years. None of them a licence, insurance is not in good standing. Especially, a table is hidden in the trunk luggage. Not any one, since it is a still life of Italian painter Giorgio Morandi, figure figurehead of the artistic current Novecento, estimated cloth to €200,000. " A gift ", swear the thieves as an explanation. Their version does not convince the police, as the two men were not the first communicants CV: one has already been convicted for fraud and the other is fresh out of a prison where he was staying to " offences against the heritage ". Taken information, Morandi canvas is listed in the file of the works of art sought by Interpol and its flight was reported by the public security of Monaco in March of this year.

Ten paintings of masters in a suitcase

Because of this, investigators go back the trail of thieves from tables to Albenga, a town of Liguria close to the French border. There, in a Court of building angle, they discover a container. In celuiu-ci, various creams and objects of all kinds, a red travel brand Samsonite suitcase. In the suitcase, a great booty: a dozen paintings by great masters of the 19th century, unique pieces that have been around the world to be exposed in many museums, as evidenced by labels for famous institutions always glued to the back of their executives. Packed in luggage, investigators are updating the other four still lifes for Morandi, two paintings of Andy Warhol, representing the first President of the People's Republic of China, Mao Zedong, a table of the Cubist painter Fernand Leger, dating from 1935, a painting by the Italian Virginio Ghiringhelli, a portrait of wife of Balthus, and two ethnic Japanese and Indian of the 19th century paintings.

A batch of masterpieces of painting estimated at 2.5 million euros. Small paintings, mostly, " certainly chosen for their reduced dimensions that make it easier to transport and for their inestimable artistic value ", explains Captain Andrea Ilari, Commander of the brigade responsible for research. " This is not easy to sell works, he continues. They are easily identifiable and traceable, with labels on their back, which testify to their passage in the most important European galleries (including the Tate Gallery, London). »

A priceless collection

It is certainly because they had found a buyer for the Morandi that two Italians took the risk of transporting the table in a car. According to the Italian police, it would be an isolated act, unrelated to an organized network. The two men complained were arrested, and their alleged accomplice, a Romanian of 36 years. But the most surprising is that the whole of the collection would have been, according to the journal Monaco-morning, stolen without breaking at a single location: the remains of Paola Folon in Monte Carlo. The Lady is not anyone: widow of Belgian artist Jean-Michel Folon, famous for its posters and his watercolours, she is also the daughter of Gino Ghiringhelli, Director of the famous Milanese Il Milione Gallery and friend of Giorgio Morandi. Great aware of contemporary art, Paola Folon has a very important personal collection. A collection of which it would be so proud that she could not do otherwise that talk, believes the Italian press on the basis of an indiscretion of police. Absent from his home at the time of the flight, the collector should his misadventure to his inability to keep its language, the same source which States that " his pre-race have been fatal ."».

Stolen Art Watch, Serbia Strutting, Pink Panthers Vilified !!!

PODGORICA, Montenegro (AP) — Montenegrin police say they have arrested an alleged member of the international gang of jewel thieves known as the Pink Panthers.

The police identified the man as Igor Jocic, a citizen of neighboring Serbia. They said he was trying to cross the border between the two Balkan states. They did not specify the alleged crime he has committed.

The members of the gang are believed by Interpol to be from Balkan countries. They are the prime suspects in a series of thefts that have netted over $175 million of jewels and watches over the past decade in Europe, Asia and the Persian Gulf.

The Pink Panther gang is named after the 1963 movie starring Peter Sellers as the bungling Inspector Clouseau.

A suspected member of the "Pink Panther" gang of international jewelry thieves has been arrested in Montenegro in line with a Swiss arrest warrant, police said Monday.

A Serbian citizen, Igor Jocic from Belgrade, is wanted by Swiss authorities over a robbery, police said in a statement.

Jocic, captured as he tried to enter Montenegro from Serbia, was detained pending his extradition, the statement said.

According to the media, the Pink Panther group is made up of 60 people originating from the former Yugoslavia, half of them believed to be from Montenegro.

They have been linked with the robberies of more than 120 jewelry stores worldwide.

The gang was given its name after British detectives found a diamond ring hidden in a jar of face cream, recalling an incident in the 1963 comedy film "Pink Panther" starring Peter Sellers.

Art Hostage Comments:

For those interested in the definative history surrounding the Pink Panthers see this remarkable insight by David Samuels in the New Yorker:
http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/04/12/100412fa_fact_samuels

A Reporter at Large

The Pink Panthers

A tale of diamonds, thieves, and the Balkans.

by David Samuels

Read more http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/04/12/100412fa_fact_samuels#ixzz1OXN8MmC5

A Reporter at Large

The Pink Panthers

A tale of diamonds, thieves, and the Balkans.

by David Samuels

Read more http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/04/12/100412fa_fact_samuels#ixzz1OXN8MmC5

Stolen Art Watch, Around the World of Art Crime !!

STOLEN PAINTINGS BY WARHOL & MORANDI RECOVERED IN MONZA

Milan - Several works of art stolen years ago in the Principality of Monaco have been recovered by the Carabinieri of Monza. More specifically, the unit involved is the Cultural Heritage Protection Nucleus. The paintings recovered include works by Giorgio Morandi and Andi Warhol. After the theft, the works had been listed in the bata banks of both Carabinieri and Interpol

British embassy art destroyed in Libya attack

Thirteen works of art owned by the government are thought to have been destroyed in attacks on the British embassy in Libyan capital Tripoli.

The works, including a 1680 engraving by Frederick de Wit, were loaned by the Government Art Collection.

The British embassy had been empty since staff were evacuated earlier in the year.

The Libyan ambassador in London was ordered to leave the UK on 1 May following the attack.

Crowds attacked foreign missions in Tripoli after a Nato air strike killed members of Libyan leader Colonel Gaddafi's family.

At the time, Foreign Secretary William Hague condemned the attacks complaining that Col Gaddafi had breached the Vienna Convention by failing to protect embassy premises.

The UK embassy building was completely burnt out with the works assumed destroyed but the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) said there could have been looting before the attacks.

A spokesman said there had been "no possibility" of moving the works of art, especially given the size of some of the pieces.

While none of the works had been valued, the DCMS said three pieces were particularly significant.

They included an 1840 portrait of William Stratton, "head keeper to Sir John Cope of Bramshill Park, Hampshire", by Edmund Havell, and a 1797 Philip Reinagle painting Harrier Killing a Bittern.

Mountainous Landscape with Travellers, said to be in the style of Italian painter Salvator Rosa, was also described as particularly valuable.

Details of the three paintings had been circulated to specialist art databases in case they had been looted, the DCMS added.

Selected pieces from The Government Art Collection, which features more than 13,500 paintings and sculptures, will go on display at London's Whitechapel Gallery from Friday.

Works are displayed in more than 400 embassies and government buildings worldwide.

Area man charged for possession of$75,000 in items

WINCHESTER- A Frederick County man has been charged with possessing more than $75,000 in jewelry and antique coins allegedly stolen from a city home, police said.

Francis P. Macdonald Jr., 21, was arrested last week on charges of possessing stolen property and possession of a firearm after having been convicted of a felony, city police Sgt. Frank Myrtle said.

The burglary occurred in the 200 block of Walker Street May 25. According to a search warrant filed in the case, entry was made though a side window of the house, and the homeowner found most of the bedrooms "shuffled through."

The homeowner told police that many pieces of jewelry, watches and coins were stolen, including class rings from Handley High School and East Tennessee State University - one of which bore the homeowner's name.

According to the warrant, both class rings and other pieces of jewelry were found by police at the Gold Rush kiosk in the Apple Blossom Mall.

The warrant states that the manager of the kiosk told police that Macdonald - identified through the driver's license he provided to Gold Rush - had pawned the items there May 26.

Myrtle said that after police learned about the items at Gold Rush, they confronted Macdonald at his home in Regency Lakes - just east of Winchester off Berryville Pike (Va. 7) - and he consented to a search of his house.

According to Myrtle, police found more of the stolen items inside, as well as a handgun, and placed Macdonald under arrest.

Though no charges related to the theft have been filed against Macdonald, Myrtle said his connection with the burglary is being investigated.

According to online records, he is free on bond. He is scheduled to appear in Winchester General District Court July 20.

Thief who stole dying pensioner’s antiques to fund Australia holiday

Family turned detectives to get their heirlooms back.

Christopher Turner, a promising cricketer from Sheffield, stole antiques from 85-year-old Peter Thurlow of Braithwell, Doncaster, and then put them up for auction on eBay on the day of his funeral.

Mr Thurlow’s family, of Rotherham, managed to track down the stolen property and bought some of it back themselves, including a valuable Prussian beer stein from the Napoleonic era which Turner hoped would help pay for his planned trip to Australia last winter.

Turner, aged 21, who plays for the Parkhead cricket team which raises money for St Luke’s Hospice in Sheffield, was employed by Sheffield firm Goldsborough Home Care as an overnight carer for sick and disabled people in their own homes, Doncaster Magistrates’ Court was told.

He also targeted a severely disabled man from Sheffield, Robert Bruce, when he was sent to care for him at night - taking three valuable antique Clarice Cliff art deco vases from his late wife’s collection.

Turner, of Blair Athol Road, Greystones, Sheffield, pleaded guilty to two theft charges and was given a community sentence because of his previous good character.

He was placed under supervision for 12 months, must complete 190 hours of unpaid work, attend a victim awareness programme and pay £85 prosecution costs.

District Judge Jonathan Bennett told Turner: “You are a young man of some intelligence and achievement but you betrayed the trust of these old gentlemen when you knew they were vulnerable and you took advantage of them.”

Prosecutor Joanne Lewis-Crooks said the beer stein was found to have gone missing just after Mr Thurlow died from pneumonia and emphysema at his home in March.

His grandson found the stein, worth around £1,000, for sale on eBay and bid £281 to get it back.

At about the same time a cleaner working for Mr Bruce spotted the vases had disappeared and they were also found on eBay, being sold for less than £65 each.

Turner’s solicitor, Geoff Flemming, said Turner had previously worked as a cricket coach in New Zealand and had the job with Goldsborough for about eight months.

He added: “What happened here was an aberration and he won’t trouble the courts again.”

A spokesman for Goldsborough Home Care of Hawke Street, Attercliffe, said after the hearing: “We empathise and apologise for the distress that this incident has caused the people and families involved and we have been supporting them through this difficult time.

“All our staff have to pass a Criminal Records Bureau checks before starting work, however, despite a clean enhanced CRB report Christopher Turner betrayed the trust of the people for whom he cared.

“We worked closely with South Yorkshire Police and Social Services to investigate this matter as a matter of urgency. Mr Turner was dismissed from Goldsborough for gross misconduct and has been referred to the Independent Safeguarding Authority in line with Safeguarding best practice procedures.”

After the case, one of Mr Thurlow’s three sons, Nigel, who lives in Ravenfield, Rotherham, said: “As long as he never works with vulnerable people again we are happy with the outcome of the case.”

Stolen artwork should go back to France: appeals court

A Manhattan appeals court this morning cited the Biblical "Judgment of Solomon" in refusing to return a stolen artwork to a woman who unwittingly bought it from a Texas antiques dealer.
The U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals said both buyer Sharyl Davis and the feds have "legitimate claims to the same indivisible piece of property," a 19th-century Impressionist print by Camille Pissarro.
But unlike the two prostitutes who argued over a baby in the First Book of Kings, "neither party has blinked," so the three-judge panel awarded ownership to the Manhattan U.S. Attorney's Office, which plans to return the monotype print to the French museum where it was swiped in 1981.

The unanimous ruling rejected arguments by Davis, an interior designer, that Pissarro's "Le Marche" was worth less than $5,000 -- the statutory minimum under the National Stolen Property Act -- when it was smuggled into the United States.
Davis' company paid $8,500 for the 6-by-8-inch artwork in 1985, which Judge Gerard Lynch called "strong evidence that it was valued at or above $5,000" at the time of its illegal importation.

The feds seized the print -- which a thief snatched off the wall of the Faure Museum in the French Alps -- when Davis tried to auction it off through Sotheby's in 2003.
Today's ruling also upheld a decision to deny Davis's lawyer, Barbara Hoffman, more than $125,000 in legal fees and expenses for her failed efforts to recover the 1884 masterpiece.
Hoffman didn't immediately return a request for comment.

A flight surprising reception at the villa of the city of Pau. Six Paintings are gone. A complaint was filed by the city.

Presented by the Museum of Fine Arts in Pau last twenty years in the villa of receipt of the City of Pau, the six tables were used as decoration in the halls of honor. On May 17, the services of the Town Hall notice their disappearance. A complaint was filed by the City of Pau.

Their value is important: 59 000 estimated by the municipal services. Police opened an investigation, while the Museum of Fine Arts has recovered the other tables that were still on deposit at the Villa St. Basil's.

A bronze statuette and two paintings were stolen on May 21 near the Prairie Street in Lower Edmonton.

The works are worth a few thousand dollars. These are two paintings by the artist Thierry Arcand-Bossé and sculptor Jean-Pierre Morin.

Sandra Dion of the Quebec City police said the owner of the works was left unattended several times. "The person wanted to carry these works of art here, so for a few moments, she was left unattended for his works back to his apartment. That when she returned she found that they were already extinct. "

Both paintings measure 23 cm X 43 cm and the bronze statuette like a grape.

Stolen Art Watch, Senator Caught Selling Stolen Ayvazovsky !!

Ayvazovsky's stolen canvas back to Armenia

A stolen canvas by world-famous marine painter Hovhannes Ayvazovsky has been returned to Armenia.

The Storm at Rocky Coast which was earlier flown to Zvartnots International airport has been officially handed to the Armenian National Art Gallery which hosted today a presentation ceremony on this memorable occasion.

The canvas was stolen from the Armenian Society for Cultural Relations about twenty years ago. Earlier this year, it was offered for sale at a Moscow auction house. A Russian based ethnic Armenian senator, Hovhannes Ohanyan, was the last owner of the sea paining.

"Perhaps it was predetermined in heaven that I was to become the owner of this canvas," the senator told reporters at the National Art Gallery.

He said it was difficult for him to part with the canvas that decorated his private collection for several years.

Ohanyan purchased the canvas from a prominent Russian family about seven years ago.

"I don't want to give the family's name for well known reasons," he said. "I had no doubt that the person who stole it could have had a dark past."

The collector said he always contacts the Interpol before purchasing a canvas to find out whether the item on sale is not in the wanted list.

A Russian Federal Service monitoring the implementation of laws on the maintenance of cultural heritage has assisted in the transportation of the canvas to Armenia. The head of the service, Victor Petrakov, who is also in Armenia, was surprised to note that a stolen artifact was being returned to its source country with their agency's assistance.

"We normally engage in finding and returning stolen artifacts to Russia," he said, expressing astonishment with the activeness of Armenians.

Minister of Culture Hasmik Poghosyan, who worked in the Society for Cultural Relations in 1990, recalled that the canvass had been stolen in a period when the building was under repairs.

Director of the National Art Gallery Paravon Mirzoyan compared the event with the "Return of the Prodigal Son."

No information on the canvas thieves is available for the time being.