{"id":327097,"date":"2026-04-30T23:39:43","date_gmt":"2026-04-30T18:09:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/?p=327097"},"modified":"2026-04-30T23:39:44","modified_gmt":"2026-04-30T18:09:44","slug":"father-and-daughter-plead-guilty-to-selling-fake-picasso-and-banksy-works-national","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/2026\/04\/30\/father-and-daughter-plead-guilty-to-selling-fake-picasso-and-banksy-works-national\/","title":{"rendered":"Father and daughter plead guilty to selling fake Picasso and Banksy works &#8211; National"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div id=\"\">\n<p>A father and daughter in Recent Jersey have pleaded guilty to wire fraud and operating a world counterfeiting scheme that sold tens of millions of dollars\u2019 price of forged works, consigned as originals by Picasso, Warhol and Banksy, to auction houses and galleries.<\/p>\n<p>Erwin Bankowski, 50, and his daughter Karolina Bankowska, 26, commissioned an artist in Poland to create a whole bunch of faux paintings of lesser-known works by famous painters and defrauded industry professionals out of US$2 million, Recent York prosecutors said in a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/usao-edny\/pr\/two-individuals-plead-guilty-prolific-counterfeit-art-scheme\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">statement Tuesday<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"l-article__part\" data-shortcode=\"tp_video_miniplayer\">\n<section id=\"miniplayer_69f399a974b65-carousel\" class=\"l-videoCarousel l-videoCarousel--embed c-carousel\" data-video-carousel-play-inline=\"true\" data-video-carousel-init=\"false\" aria-label=\"Video carousel contains 3 videos.\">\n<div class=\"l-videoCarousel__inner\">\n<div class=\"l-videoCarousel__featured\">\n<div class=\"c-video c-videoPlay \" data-iframe-receiver=\"\" data-autoplay=\"\" data-displayinline-featured=\"true\" data-displayinline-type=\"video\" data-displayinline-player-id=\"miniplayer_69f399a974b65\" data-displayinline-video-id=\"9083759\" data-displayinline-ratio=\"16:9\" data-displayinline=\"https:\/\/globalnews.ca\/video\/embed\/playlist\/9083759,11515832,3257220\/?poster=https%3A%2F%2Fi0.wp.com%2Fmedia.globalnews.ca%2Fvideostatic%2Fnews%2F5rb1pnd7v5-9qk2cmkduc%2F0824_dan.jpg%3Fw%3D1200%26quality%3D70%26strip%3Dall#autoplay&#038;stickyiframe=miniplayer_69f399a974b65\" data-displayinline-playlist=\"9083759,11515832,3257220\" data-displayinline-sticky=\"true\" data-permutive-data='{\"content\":{\"name\":\"Priceless Winston Churchill portrait stolen in Ottawa hotel 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in the United States\",\"New Jersey\",\"New York City\",\"Ottawa\",\"Ownership\",\"Pablo Picasso\",\"Painting\",\"Phillips (auctioneers)\",\"Plea\",\"Poland\",\"Prosecutor\",\"Rembrandt\",\"Richard Mayhew\",\"Theft\",\"United States\",\"United States Attorney\",\"United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York\",\"United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York\",\"Varnish\",\"Winston Churchill\"]}}}'>\n<div class=\"c-video__inner \">\n\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-video__placeholder\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"c-video__image\" alt=\"Click to play video: 'Priceless Winston Churchill portrait stolen in Ottawa hotel heist'\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/media.globalnews.ca\/videostatic\/news\/5rb1pnd7v5-9qk2cmkduc\/0824_dan.jpg?w=1040&#038;quality=70&#038;strip=all\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"\" sizes=\"auto, \" data-sizes=\"(min-width: 1040px) 1040px,(min-width: 720px) 720px,450px\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-video__overlay\"><\/p>\n<p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<time class=\"c-video__duration\">2:14<\/time><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-video__title\">Priceless Winston Churchill portrait stolen in Ottawa hotel heist<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"l-videoCarousel__glide glide \">\n<div class=\"glide__arrows c-carousel__buttons l-videoCarousel__buttons\" data-glide-el=\"controls\">\n\t<button class=\"glide__arrow glide__arrow--left c-carousel__button c-carousel__prev l-videoCarousel__button l-videoCarousel__prev c-longform-gallery__prev\" data-glide-dir=\"<\"><\/p>\n<p>\t\t<span class=\"sr-only\">Previous Video<\/span><br \/>\n\t<\/button><br \/>\n\t<button class=\"glide__arrow glide__arrow--right c-carousel__button c-carousel__next l-videoCarousel__button l-videoCarousel__next c-longform-gallery__next\" data-glide-dir=\">&#8220;><\/p>\n<p>\t\t<span class=\"sr-only\">Next Video<\/span><br \/>\n\t<\/button><br \/>\n\t\t<button class=\"c-carousel__goto\" data-glide-dir=\"=0\" aria-hidden=\"true\" tabindex=\"-1\"><\/button>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>\t\t<!-- video stream item --><\/p>\n<\/section><\/div>\n<div class=\"c-ad c-ad--bigbox l-article__ad\">\n<p>Story continues below commercial<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>\u201cFor years, these defendants painted themselves as purveyors of fantastic art while selling lies on canvas to unsuspecting collectors,\u201d Joseph Nocella Jr., United States attorney for the Eastern District of Recent York, stated.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cToday\u2019s convictions strip away the varnish and reveal the fraud underneath.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Between 2020 and 2025, the defendants conspired to auction greater than 200 counterfeit artworks they said were painted by revered artists, including Andy Warhol, Pablo Picasso, Banksy, Raimond Staprans, Richard Mayhew and Native American artist Fritz Scholder.<\/p>\n<div class=\"l-article__part\" data-shortcode=\"caption\">\n<figure class=\"c-figure c-figure--alignnone c-figure--expandable\">\n<div class=\"c-figure__inner\"><figcaption class=\"c-figure__caption c-caption\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-caption__desc\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\tA counterfeit work purportedly by Raimond Staprans sold for $60,000.\t\t\t\t<\/span><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<cite class=\"c-caption__cite\"><\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\tDOJ USAO Eastern District of Recent York\t\t\t\t<\/cite><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>As a part of the scheme, the father-daughter duo fabricated ownership histories to say that a number of the forged works had belonged to non-public collectors, individuals related to the artists, now-closed art galleries or the private collections of corporations that were now not in operation, prosecutors said.<\/p>\n<div class=\"c-inlineSignup\" data-newsletter-inline=\"\">\n<div class=\"c-inlineSignup__image\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"170\" height=\"225\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/globalnews.ca\/wp-content\/themes\/shaw-globalnews\/images\/skyline\/national.jpg\" alt=\"Get daily Canada news delivered to your inbox so you'll never miss the day's top stories.\">\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"c-inlineSignup__content\">\n<h2 class=\"c-inlineSignup__title\">Get day by day National news<\/h2>\n<p>Get day by day Canada news delivered to your inbox so you will never miss the day&#8217;s top stories.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Their most profitable fake, purportedly by Mayhew, was sold by the auction house DuMouchelles last October for $160,000, The Associated Press reported.<\/p>\n<div class=\"c-ad c-ad--bigbox l-article__ad\">\n<p>Story continues below commercial<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Several other auction houses targeted within the scheme, including Bonhams, Phillips, Freeman\u2019s and Antique Arena, either declined to reply or didn&#8217;t reply to AP inquiries.<\/p>\n<p>Global News didn&#8217;t independently confirm the claims with the auction houses in query.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThese two individuals didn\u2019t just sell counterfeit art \u2013 they undermined trust, exploited buyers, and attempted to make the most of fraud,\u201d FBI Assistant Director in Charge James C. Barnacle explained.<\/p>\n<div class=\"c-tabs\">\n<p>\n\t\t\t<button role=\"tab\" class=\"c-tabs__tab c-tabs__tab--active\" type=\"button\">More on Trending<\/button><br \/>\n\t\t\t<button role=\"tab\" class=\"c-tabs__tab\" type=\"button\">More videos<\/button>\n\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>\u201cOn this instance, the FBI, with its partners, has made it clear that those that manipulate the marketplace for personal gain might be caught and held accountable.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The defendants selected galleries and corporations that were now not operational, making it harder for potential buyers to confirm the origin of the counterfeit works, lawyers also said.<\/p>\n<p>The duo went up to now as to forge certificates of authenticity for a number of the counterfeits, using antique books to imprint custom-made stamps, which they then attached to the solid paintings.<\/p>\n<p>The defendants then consigned the fake art to galleries and auction houses across the U.S., which then attempted to auction the works to buyers for as much as $160,000, the statement says.<\/p>\n<div class=\"l-article__part\" data-shortcode=\"caption\">\n<figure class=\"c-figure c-figure--alignnone c-figure--expandable\">\n<div class=\"c-figure__inner\"><figcaption class=\"c-figure__caption c-caption\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-caption__desc\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\tCounterfeit Work Purportedly by Andy Warhol Sold for $5,500.\t\t\t\t<\/span><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<cite class=\"c-caption__cite\"><\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\tDOJ USAO Eastern District of Recent York\t\t\t\t<\/cite><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>In court on Tuesday, Bankowska told a judge that her \u201cconduct was mistaken and I&#8217;m guilty.\u201d Her attorney, Todd Spodek, said his client had placed greater than $1 million in an escrow account.<\/p>\n<div class=\"c-ad c-ad--bigbox l-article__ad\">\n<p>Story continues below commercial<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Through a Polish interpreter, Bankowski also apologized. His attorney, Jeffrey Chabrowe, added that his client had \u201cregrettably made a terrible decision in an effort to support his family.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Each father and daughter are facing greater than three years in prison, in addition to $1.9 million in restitution and the potential for deportation to Poland.<\/p>\n<p><em>\u2014 with files from The Associated Press<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div>\n<p>\n\t\t&#038;copy 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A father and daughter in Recent Jersey have pleaded guilty to wire fraud and operating a world counterfeiting scheme that sold tens of millions of dollars\u2019 price of forged works, consigned as originals by Picasso, Warhol and Banksy, to auction houses and galleries. Erwin Bankowski, 50, and his daughter Karolina Bankowska, 26, commissioned an artist [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":327098,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20691],"tags":[34248,1330,2564,719,499,1903,41414,28369,4497,3411],"class_list":["post-327097","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world","tag-banksy","tag-daughter","tag-fake","tag-father","tag-guilty","tag-national","tag-picasso","tag-plead","tag-selling","tag-works"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/327097","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=327097"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/327097\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":327100,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/327097\/revisions\/327100"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/327098"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=327097"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=327097"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=327097"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}