Todd Andrew Desper, Stolen Art Scheme, Massachusetts 2017

Beckley Man Indicted in Stolen Art Scheme

A West Virginia man was indicted by a federal grand jury in Boston for his role in a scheme to sell stolen paintings from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in 1990.

Todd Andrew Desper, 47, of Beckley, W.Va., was arrested on May 22, 2017, and charged with wire fraud and attempted wire fraud. He was released on bond the day after his arrest and remains on pre-trial release.

According to court documents, Desper solicited foreign buyers for the stolen paintings, including Rembrandt's Storm on the Sea of Galilee and Vermeer's The Concert, on Craigslist in various foreign cities, including Venice and London. He directed interested buyers to create an encrypted email account to communicate with him.

Desper allegedly instructed the security director for the Gardner Museum to send a cashier's check for $5 million to a location in West Virginia, claiming that Storm on the Sea of Galilee would be sent in return, concealed behind another painting. However, the investigation revealed that Desper had no access to, nor information about, the stolen paintings, but was instead engaged in a multi-million dollar fraud scheme targeting foreign art buyers.

The 13 pieces of artwork stolen from the Isabella Stewart Gardner museum on March 18, 1990, include Rembrandt's Storm on the Sea of Galilee and Vermeer's The Concert. The combined value of the art stolen during the Gardner theft is estimated at $500 million, although several of the works are considered priceless within the art community.

Desper faces four counts of wire fraud and attempted wire fraud, which carry a sentence of no greater than 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine up to $250,000. Desper remains on pre-trial release and is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ma/pr/west-virginia-man-indicted-fraud-charges-tied-stolen-gardner-museum-paintings