Stolen Art Alert

Dr. Kurt Wagner, a Los Angeles collector noted for his Toulouse-Lautrec prints, has been indicted in insurance fraud for $250,000 for an art theft he falsely reported March 1980

Twenty-three major thefts have recently been resolved, resulting in the recovery of 99 objects.

Three disputes have taken place in New York over the misrepresentation of a vendor's right to pass title: Swiss dealer Gerard Schreiner and a European collector; New York dealer Herman Shickman, who discovered that a third-party lien prevented his taking title to a painting purchased at Sotheby’s; and Richard Feigen, who lost his appeal in Porter v. Wertz, in which he was held liable for the purchase price of a Utrillo appropriated from Porter by Harold von Maker and sold to Feigen.

FBI's “Operation Top Thief” recovers Russell, Remington and other valuable stolen works.

Statistics

Mr. Coleman, Assistant Vice President for Security at Sotheby Parke Bernet, applauds the “Security Dialogue” article in November 1980 issue of Stolen Art Alert and adds his own advice.