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Father and daughter admit to $2M Banksy and Warhol art forgery scam

The Independent·Jake Offenhartz·about 1 month ago
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A father-daughter duo has admitted to orchestrating an elaborate art forgery scheme that defrauded New York City’s most prominent fine art auction houses and unwitting buyers out of at least $2 million. Karolina Bankowska, 26, and her father Erwin Bankowski, 50, pleaded guilty on Tuesday to charges of wire fraud conspiracy and misrepresenting Native American–produced goods. The sophisticated operation involved creating at least 200 meticulously designed imitations of artworks by celebrated artists such as Banksy, Andy Warhol, and Andrew Wyeth. These fakes were then passed off as genuine, often targeting lesser-known pieces to avoid immediate suspicion. New York City art dealer Robert Rogal recounted a visit from Karolina Bankowska a little over a year ago, when she presented a framed painting purportedly by Wyeth. Rogal, intrigued, accepted the piece on consignment, estimating its auction value between. "The provenance was a little fuzzy," he said. "But she seemed credible.…

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