Father and daughter plead guilty to selling fake Picasso and Banksy works - BERITAJA

A begetter and girl from New Jersey person pleaded blameworthy to ligament fraud and operating a world counterfeiting strategy that sold millions of dollars’ worthy of forged works, consigned arsenic originals by Picasso, Warhol and Banksy, to auction houses and galleries.

Erwin Bankowski, 50, and his girl Karolina Bankowska, 26, commissioned an creator successful Poland to create hundreds of clone paintings of lesser-known useful by celebrated painters and defrauded manufacture professionals retired of US$2 million, New York prosecutors said successful a statement Tuesday.

“For years, these defendants painted themselves arsenic purveyors of good creation while trading lies connected canvas to unsuspecting collectors,” Joseph Nocella Jr., United States lawyer for the Eastern District of New York, stated.

“Today’s convictions portion distant the varnish and uncover the fraud underneath.”

Between 2020 and 2025, the defendants conspired to auction much than 200 counterfeit artworks they said were painted by revered artists, including Andy Warhol, Pablo Picasso, Banksy, Raimond Staprans, Richard Mayhew and Native American creator Fritz Scholder.

As portion of the scheme, the father-daughter duo fabricated ownership histories to declare that immoderate of the forged useful had belonged to backstage collectors, individuals associated pinch the artists, now-closed creation galleries aliases the backstage collections of corporations that were nary longer successful operation, prosecutors said.

Their about profitable fake, purportedly by Mayhew, was sold by the auction location DuMouchelles past October for $160,000, The Associated Press reported.

Several different auction houses targeted successful the scheme, including Bonhams, Phillips, Freeman’s and Antique Arena, either declined to respond aliases did not respond to AP inquiries.

BERITAJA did not independently verify the claims pinch the auction houses successful question.

“These 2 individuals didn’t conscionable waste counterfeit creation – they undermined trust, exploited buyers, and attempted to profit from fraud,” FBI Assistant Director successful Charge James C. Barnacle explained.

“In this instance, the FBI, pinch its partners, has made it clear that those who manipulate the marketplace for individual summation will beryllium caught and held accountable.”

The defendants chose galleries and companies that were nary longer operational, making it harder for imaginable buyers to verify the root of the counterfeit works, lawyers besides said.

The duo went truthful acold arsenic to forge certificates of authenticity for immoderate of the counterfeits, utilizing ancient books to imprint custom-made stamps, which they past attached to the forged paintings.

The defendants past consigned the clone creation to galleries and auction houses crossed the U.S., which past attempted to auction the useful to buyers for up to $160,000, the connection says.

In tribunal connected Tuesday, Bankowska told a judge that her “conduct was incorrect and I americium guilty.” Her attorney, Todd Spodek, said his customer had placed much than $1 cardinal successful an escrow account.

Through a Polish interpreter, Bankowski besides apologized. His attorney, Jeffrey Chabrowe, added that his customer had “regrettably made a unspeakable determination successful an effort to support his family.”

Both begetter and girl are facing much than 3 years successful prison, arsenic good arsenic $1.9 cardinal successful restitution and the anticipation of deportation to Poland.

— pinch files from The Associated Press