Historic Footage Connected to Gardner Museum Burglary Released, FBI Seeks Public Assistance

The U.S. Justice Department released a video of some one who may be connected to the infamous unsolved Boston art museum burglary in 1990.  

BOSTON—Twenty-five years after the notorious burglary of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, law enforcement officials are seeking the public’s assistance in identifying an unauthorized visitor to the museum the night before the theft. That person entered the museum through the same door as the thieves in the middle of the night, 24 hours before the theft.

“Over many months we have engaged in an exhaustive re-examination of the original evidence in this case. Our aim has been to ensure that all avenues have been explored in the continuing quest to recover these artworks,” said United States Attorney Carmen Ortiz. “Today we are releasing video images from the night before the theft—images which have not previously been seen by the public—with the hope of identifying an unauthorized visitor to the museum. With the public’s help, we may be able to develop new information that could lead to the recovery of these invaluable works of art.”

The video footage released today, captured by Museum security cameras 24 hours before the Gardner heist, shows an automobile pull up next to a rear entrance of the Museum. The car matches the general description of a vehicle that was reported to have been parked outside the Museum moments prior to the theft on March 18, 1990.

You can read the rest of the report and watch the video via the below link:

https://www.fbi.gov/boston/press-releases/2015/historic-footage-connected-to-gardner-museum-burglary-released-public-assistance-sought 

FBI Art Crime Team Celebrates 10th Anniversary: A Decade Of Successful Investigations And Recoveries

The FBI website offers a Q & A with the FBI's Art Crime Team's manager. 

To commemorate the 10th anniversary of the FBI’s Art Crime Team, FBI.gov recently discussed the team’s history, mission, and accomplishments with Bonnie Magness-Gardiner, who manages the Bureau’s art theft program.

Q: How did the Art Crime Team get started?

Magness-Gardiner: The FBI has always had agents who investigated frauds and thefts related to art, but in 2003, there was substantial looting of Iraq’s National Museum in Baghdad. Thousands of works were stolen. Because of the U.S. presence in Iraq at the time, it was clear that somebody would have to investigate. It was also clear that the U.S. government didn’t have a team organized, in place, or with the expertise required to do that kind of investigation. But the need for such a team was apparent, and the FBI took that on. The Art Crime Team was formed a year or so later.

Q: What were those early days like?

Magness-Gardiner: When I first arrived, the team consisted of eight agents located in field offices around the country, as well as three trial attorneys from the Department of Justice assigned to assist with prosecutions. Today, the agent component has almost doubled to 15 men and women. One of the great benefits of having the agents located in so many cities in the U.S. is that we literally cover the country.

You can read the rest of the interview, part 1, and watch a video via the below link:

http://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/2015/february/art-crime-team-celebrates-10th-anniversary-part-1  

You can read part 2 of the interview and watch a video via the below link:

http://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/2015/february/art-crime-team-celebrates-10th-anniversary-part-2/art-crime-team-celebrates-10th-anniversary-part-2?utm_campaign=email-Daily&utm_medium=email&utm_source=fbi-top-stories&utm_content=405282 

Masterworks, Murder And Mobsters, A Philadelphia Story?

 



Veteran organized crime reporter George Anastasia is covering the federal organized crime trials in Philadelphia for Bigtrial.net.

 

Is jailed mob boss Joseph "Uncle Joe" Ligambi or any other member of his organization a secret "patron of the arts?"

That question surfaced this week as the FBI in Boston said it was close to solving a $500 million art heist that may have had a Philadelphia underworld connection.

In a week full of wild speculation, rumor and innuendo about the 1990 robbery -- one bizarre and unfounded report had some of the masterpieces stashed in the backroom of a South Philadelphia bar -- the story of mobsters and stolen masterworks was getting lots of traction.

In more mundane courtroom developments, meanwhile, two major players from the crime family, underboss Joseph "Mousie" Massimino and mob soldier Damion Canalichio are scheduled to be sentenced in May following their convictions last month on racketeering conspiracy charges. Each faces a potential double-digit prison term, given the nature of the charge and their lengthy criminal records.

Canalichio, 41, has two prior federal drug convictions. Massimino, 62, has been jailed on drug dealing and racketeering charges.

You can read the rest of the piece via the below link:

http://www.bigtrial.net/2013/03/masterworks-murders-and-mobsters.html#more

You can also read an earlier post on the Philly connection to the Gardner Museum theft via the below link:

http://www.pauldavisoncrime.com/2013/03/philly-mob-connection-to-gardner-muesum.html

Largest Property Crime In U.S. History: FBI Announces Reward For Return Of Artwork In The Gardner Museum Theft

The below information is from the FBI web site, www.fbi.gov:

Today, the FBI—along with Boston’s Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Massachusetts—asked for the public’s help in recovering artwork stolen from the museum more than two decades ago in what remains the largest property crime in U.S. history.

At a press conference this afternoon in Boston on the 23rd anniversary of the theft, officials hoped to get the attention of those who might have or know the whereabouts of the 13 stolen works of art—including rare paintings by Rembrandt and Vermeer—by publicly restating a $5 million reward.

“Today, we are pleased to announce that the FBI has made significant investigative progress in the search for the stolen art from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum,” said Richard DesLauriers, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Boston office. “We’ve determined in the years after the theft that the art was transported to the Connecticut and Philadelphia regions. But we haven’t identified where the art is right now, and that’s why we are asking the public for help.”

“With these considerable developments in the investigation over the last couple of years,” said Special Agent Geoff Kelly, who heads the FBI investigation, “it’s likely over time someone has seen the art hanging on a wall, placed above a mantel, or stored in an attic. We want that person to call the FBI.”

You can read the rest of the piece via the below link:

http://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/2013/march/reward-offered-for-return-of-stolen-gardner-museum-artwork/reward-offered-for-return-of-stolen-gardner-museum-artwork