Ace Gallery Trustee Chrismas Guilty of $260K Embezzlement

LOS ANGELES – A Beverly Hills art gallery’s trust was shattered as Douglas J. Chrismas, the once-respected president and CEO of Ace Gallery, was found guilty by a jury of embezzling over $260,000 from the bankruptcy estate of Ace Gallery Los Angeles.

The 80-year-old Chrismas, who also operated Art and Architecture Books of the 21st Century under the Ace Gallery banner, faces a five-year federal prison sentence for each of three counts of embezzlement against a bankruptcy estate.

According to evidence from a four-day trial, Chrismas, while acting as fiduciary and trustee, siphoned $264,595 belonging to Ace Gallery’s estate. This included a $50,000 check signed by Chrismas himself, which was paid to Ace Museum, a non-profit corporation he owned and controlled.

Chrismas also rerouted $100,000 due to Ace Gallery for artwork purchases and an additional $114,595 intended for the gallery’s landlord to his own museum. The defendant remained in control of Ace Gallery until an independent trustee was appointed in April 2016 following the gallery’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing in February 2013.

United States District Judge Mark C. Scarsi has set a September 9 sentencing hearing for Chrismas, who is now staring down the barrel of potential federal prison time. The investigation into this art-world scam was spearheaded by the FBI’s Art Crime Team, with Assistant United States Attorneys Valerie L. Makarewicz and David W. Williams leading the prosecution.