Spanish police arrest 9 on suspicion of selling fake art

Source: AP-Excite

MADRID (AP) — Spanish police have broken up a gang that allegedly created and then sold fake works of art purporting to be by renowned artists including Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol and Joan Miro.

Officers have arrested nine suspects in the eastern region of Valencia, including the alleged counterfeiters and intermediaries involved in selling the fakes online and through galleries, an Interior Ministry statement says.

The investigation began following a complaint that art objects had been stolen from a house in the eastern city of Denia.

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In this photo released by the Spanish Interior Ministry on Saturday, Feb. 28, 2015, different pieces of alleged fake art are seen inside a studio in Valencia, Spain. Spanish Police have broken up a network that allegedly created and sold fake works of art purporting to be by artists of international standing including Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol and Joan Miro. Officers have arrested nine suspects in the eastern region of Valencia, including the alleged counterfeiters and intermediaries involved in selling the fakes. Investigators searched seven addresses and seized 271 works, including canvasses, sculptures and documents to be used to falsify the art's provenance. (AP Photo/Spanish Interior Ministry, HO)


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