June 29, 2000
CONTENTS:
- More on stolen Picasso
- Correction URL: http://www.mchelvanrijn.com/ should have been: http://www.michelvanrijn.com/
- STUDENTS CHARGED IN THEFT OF NU'S `MOO'
- Virtual Theft of Books from Auction House
- Reports say FBI targeted trio in Gardner art theft; Group included reputed mob associate
- June update - notes on stolen art (Jonathan Sazonoff)
- Ancient Roman City Going Underwater
More on stolen Picasso.
June 26 I informed the mailinglist about the recovery of a stolen Picasso (see: http://museum-security.org/00/098.html#1).
An image of this painting is on-line at: http://www.ntvmsnbc.com/news/13645.asp
Even though the Turkish police believes this painting might be from a theft take took place some time ago in Kuwait there is no information whatsoever in the Interpol database. It seems the origin of this painting is obscure. Maybe one of our subscribers is able to shed some light on this. If you can please let me know and I will inform the proper authorities.
Quite contrary to our standard policy not to attach files to our messages, this time I have attached an image of the stolen painting. I do hope the MSN subscribers will accept tis exception.
Ton Cremers
toncremers@museum-security.org
phone/fax: 31 10 4653837
cellular: 31 10 6 24224620
Correction URL:
http://www.mchelvanrijn.com/
should have been:
http://www.michelvanrijn.com/
sorry for this inconvenience.
TC
STUDENTS CHARGED IN THEFT OF NU'S `MOO'
By Brian Cox
Northwestern University's cow caper is over, and two fraternity brothers face criminal charges after leading campus police to the painted bovine statue that had been stolen, then hacked into five pieces in an apparent attempt to hide the evidence. Boris Labinoz, 20, and Nicholas Hughes, 21, have each been charged with theft and criminal damage to property. The cow disappeared in mid-May from its 200-pound base in front of Norris Center, where it had been sawed off above the hooves. Both men are members of the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity. Hughes declined to comment when he was contacted at the frat house at 2331 Sheridan Rd. Labinoz could not be reached. A preliminary hearing at the Skokie courthouse Monday was continued until Oct. 11. By then, the men may be offered a chance to make restitution by paying up to $14,000 to commission an artist to replace the cow, officials said. "If they do that, it will show a good faith effort to do the right thing," said Margaret Barr, vice president of student affairs at Northwestern. "Once I see it back again, I will be happy." Northwestern officials are considering other disciplinary measures for damage to campus property. Police believe the men snatched the cow as a prank, but then became nervous and contacted authorities on June 1 after hearing someone was about to turn them in. No other fraternity members have been implicated, according to a court transcript. No one has stepped forward to claim a $500 reward in the cow-napping, Barr said. The cow, dubbed Moo(AT)NU, was similar to those displayed during the Cows on Parade festival in downtown Chicago last summer. The Institute for Learning in Retirement donated the statue, which reportedly cost $3,000. But the cow had to be transported from Switzerland before it was delivered to an artist who painted it with abstract circles and squares, Barr said. The cow was in place in front of the student union for three weeks before it was nabbed.
Reaction on campus to the criminal charges was mixed
"They should be punished," said Kristin Ritz, a 20-year-old senior. "It was a mean thing to do. There was no need for it to happen. It was embarrassing for the university." "It's inappropriate for them to be charged," said student Kevin Johnson, 19. "I bet they didn't know it was worth that much money. It's excessive for the university to push this."
from Exlibris:
From: macmakin@pacbell.net
Subject: Virtual Theft of Books from Auction House
A week or so ago in this space there was a report of a "virtual theft" of books from a bookseller, which were listed for auction on Ebay. An interesting switch in the tactic has occurred, in which a bookseller has "stolen" listings of books which will be auctioned off, and offered them for retail sale as his own. The auction in question is Pacific Book Auction Galleries' catalogue of the Hunter Family Library, focusing on books on China, early medicine there, etc. At least half a dozen entries offering copies of these unique items can be found on abebooks.com. One example, for comparison's sake, is "Fryer, John, comp. Vocabulary of Names of Materia Medica.." The listing on abebooks.com is virtually identical to Lot 100 in Sale 211 at the Pacific Book Auction Galleries website, pacificbook.com, down to the signature of S.A. Hunter dated 1890. Apparently this is yet another way to run a bookstore without a lot of investment in inventory.
Bruce E. MacMakin
Reports say FBI targeted trio in Gardner art theft
Group included reputed mob associate
By Shelley Murphy
More than a year before he was charged with plotting to rob an armored car company, reputed Mafia associate Carmello Merlino and two others, including a former Boston police officer, were being eyed by the FBI as suspects in the 1990 theft of $200 million worth of paintings from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, according to US District Court documents. The FBI questioned Merlino and David Turner, a defendant in the armored car case, about the Gardner heist as recently as February 1999, but declined to say yesterday whether the men have been ruled out in connection with the theft. While the largest art theft in modern history remains unsolved, investigators have been reluctant to rule anybody out. FBI agents warned Merlino, a convicted bank robber, in meetings between November 1997 and April 1998 that they had been tipped that he and his associates were involved in the theft and had access to six or seven of the stolen paintings, according to FBI reports filed in US District Court in Boston last fall and obtained by the Globe late last week. Merlino, an associate of John Salemme, brother of former organized crime boss Francis P. Salemme, denied having the paintings, but said that he was in contact with someone who may have them and agreed to try to help the FBI recover the artwork, saying, ''Maybe I can get some money from this,'' according to the FBI reports. But Merlino, 65, of Quincy, never did help the FBI and was arrested on Feb. 7, 1999, along with Turner, 32, of Randolph; Stephen Rossetti, 41, of East Boston; and his nephew, William Merlino, 39, of Quincy, on charges that they plotted to rob the Loomis-Fargo Armored Car Co. in Easton. In an affidavit filed in federal court, Turner said that he was confronted after his arrest by FBI agents who told him he had been implicated in the Gardner heist, along with Carmello Merlino, another associate, and a former Boston police officer, but that he would be allowed to ''walk'' if he helped retrieve the paintings. ''The agents told me that they had information from two different sources that I robbed the Gardner Museum with an individual named Charles Pappas, that the `inside guy' was Peter Boylan (a former Boston police officer from Braintree, Massachusetts, who has since been convicted of certain criminal offenses) and that Carmello Merlino was the person who set it up,'' Turner wrote in his affidavit. It is the first time that Boylan's name has been mentioned in connection with the Gardner theft, but neither the FBI nor the US Attorney's office would comment on the veracity of Turner's affidavit. On March 18, 1990, two men disguised as Boston police officers forced their way into the Gardner Museum at 2 a.m. and in less than 90 minutes, removed 13 pieces of art from their frames or the walls, including paintings and sketches by Rembrandt, Vermeer, Degas, and Manet. Boylan, 69, was convicted in 1988 of taking $1,400 in payoffs while working as a police detective and was sentenced to two years in prison. Because of appeals, however, he remained free until spring 1990. He couldn't be located for comment yesterday. An FBI affidavit filed in court says a cooperating witness identified Boylan as a member of Merlino's crew. Pappas was slain in Braintree in November 1995, after agreeing to be a witness against Turner, who had been charged with putting a gun to a woman's head during a Canton home invasion and escaping with $130,000 in jewelry and cash. The charges against Turner were dropped after Pappas was killed and the woman refused to testify against Turner. In his affidavit, Turner wrote that the agents grilled him about the Gardner paintings, but, he said, ''I told the agents that I had no idea who stole the paintings or where they were being stored, and that I didn't know anybody who had access to them.'' Merlino, who also filed an affidavit, said FBI agents told him they heard he was offering to negotiate the return of the paintings in exchange for $12 million. ''I remember telling the agents that I could use the money, and I would have turned them in already if I had access to them,'' wrote Merlino, alleging that FBI agents threatened to ruin his Dorchester auto shop by spreading the word that it was under FBI surveillance. Merlino said one agent warned, ''We have ways of putting people in the can if we want to.'' The revelations about the Gardner Museum investigation were made as part of an effort by Turner and Merlino to persuade a federal judge to drop the armored car charges against them on the grounds of ''outrageous government misconduct.'' Defense lawyers say that the FBI concocted the plan to rob the Loomis-Fargo facility, then used an informant to entice Merlino and the others to help him carry out the robbery by making it appear to be ''a virtually irresistible criminal venture.'' The informant boasted that he had a friend who worked inside the facility and that they were likely to net $30 million to $50 million from the robbery. The ultimate objective, defense lawyers say, was to pressure Merlino and Turner to find and return the Gardner paintings. Attorney Robert M. Goldstein, who represents Turner, said yesterday, ''It's the defendants' position that the government created this situation from whole cloth because the government believes that some or all of these defendants, if faced with a serious prosecution, would attempt to utilize the Gardner paintings to gain leniency.'' The government denies the defense claims and insists that the robbery was Merlino's idea. FBI Special Agent David T. Nadolski said in an affidavit that the cooperating witness warned the FBI in October 1997 that Merlino, who was convicted of a 1968 Brinks armored car robbery, was planning to rob the Easton facility. The same witness also told the FBI that he thought Merlino and his crew were involved with the Gardner paintings and were in possession of the stolen artwork. The witness was paid $1,000 for that information, according to records. US District Judge Richard Stearns has granted a request by the defense to hold an evidentiary hearing to determine whose idea it was to rob the armored car facility and whether Merlino and Turner were charged in the case in a bid to pressure them to cooperate in the Gardner case.
This story ran on page A01 of the Boston Globe on 6/13/2000.
© Copyright 2000 Globe Newspaper Company.
From: Jonathan Sazonoff saz@kwom.com
Subject: June update - notes on stolen art
Dear Subscribers,
Several items of have come to my attention, which I hope you might find of interest. First, Australian Crime Stoppers (New South Whales) note the theft of a 15th century Dutch painting.
http://www.police.nsw.gov.au/crimestoppers/detail.cfm?ObjectID=111&Section=crime
++++++++++++++++++++
Theft of Antique Artwork
Goulburn Detectives are appealing to the public for information about the theft of an antique painting in Goulburn last month. A/Detective Sargeant Marc Chaplin from Goulburn Local Area Command said the theft happened between 5.30pm Friday, 26 May and 11am Saturday, 27 May 2000. "The offender/s gained entry to a building on Auburn Street, Goulburn and removed a painting of a Dutch Cavalier. "The painting was examined some year ago by an art expert and is believed to have been painted about 1640," he said. "The artwork has been painted in the Rembrandt style and when stolen it had a wooden frame and a glass cover. "The painting was last valued approximately 40 to 50 years ago and at that time it was estimated to be worth 25,000 English pounds," he said. "It is difficult to value the painting in today's money, as it would need to be assessed again," Det Chaplin said. Anyone with information about the theft or the whereabouts of the painting should contact Goulburn Detectives on (02) 4823 2099 or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000. Callers to Crime Stoppers can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a reward of up to $1000 for information leading to an arrest.
+++++++++++++++
Next, a new organization (based in Manchester UK) has launched a web-site concerning stolen art http://www.findstolenart.com
Next just for fun, "SoYouWanna know the top ten most expensive paintings?"
http://www.soyouwanna.com/site/toptens/paintings/paintings.html
And finally, my friend and advisor Art Detective Robert Spiel (CPP) has moved his Chicago office up to the North Shore. His new address is:
Robert Spiel and Associates
855 Skokie Highway
Lake Bluff, IL 60044
Tel: (847) 234-1786
Fax: (847) 234-1784
e-mail: spiel@arttheft.com
web: http://www.arttheft.com
Hope you find this material of interest.
Regards,
Jonathan Sazonoff
Saz Productions, Inc.
http://www.saztv.com
Contributing US Ed.
Museum Security Network
http://www.museum-security.org/saz.html
Ancient Roman City Going Underwater
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) - Archaeologists who have rescued precious mosaics and other artifacts from two Roman villas were hoping to excavate more, but floodwaters from a dam in southeastern Turkey have washed over the site, reports said Wednesday. Turkish archaeologists, aided by colleagues from Britain, France, Australia and New Zealand, excavated the artifacts from the lower part of the ancient city of Zeugma, founded in the third century B.C. The villas on the lower level proved to be a treasure trove: At least 14 mosaics have been uncovered there, along with 3,700 silver and bronze coins and 60,000 ceramic seals. Archaeologists believe the lower city, once a Roman military post, holds many more treasures. They were hoping for a delay in the filling of the Birecik Dam so they could excavate more. Instead, they got a 10-day reprieve to remove the artifacts and take them to a nearby museum. Birecik is part of a multibillion-dollar project to irrigate land, alleviate Turkey's electricity shortage and create jobs in the nation's impoverished southeast. The project has displaced more than 30,000 people. The archaeologists are now excavating the upper terraces of Zeugma, the Anatolia news agency reported. Those terraces are expected to be inundated by rising waters from the dam in October.