Art collector accused of fraud faces extradition to UK after Lisbon arrest
Written by News on 23/06/2020
An art collector wanted in London for fraud is facing extradition after being arrested in Lisbon.
Angela Gulbenkian is accused of fraudulently selling a £1.1m polka-dot pumpkin sculpture after claiming to be working on behalf of the owner.
It’s also alleged she sold an Andy Warhol print for £115,000 to a London dealer who claims she was not entitled to sell it.
A European arrest warrant was issued in February for German-born Ms Gulbenkian after she didn’t turn up for a hearing at Southwark Crown Court where she faced a fraud charge.
She is accused of fraudulently selling an 81kg polka-dot pumpkin sculpture by the Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama to a Hong Kong-based art advisor in April 2017.
The buyer says he paid her $1.4m (£1.1m) but did not receive the sculpture and has launched a High Court action to recover the work or the money.
In a separate case Ms Gulbenkian, 38, is accused by a London dealer of fraudulently selling him an Andy Warhol print “Queen Elizabeth II”, worth £115,000.
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According to The Times newspaper, the dealer filed a complaint in a Munich court after discovering the original owner, a German professor, was demanding the print’s return or compensation.
Ms Gulbenkian is said to have moved to Lisbon with her husband Duarte, a football agent and relative of a wealthy oil tycoon.
She was arrested there earlier this month and is in custody awaiting extradition to the UK.
(c) Sky News 2020: Art collector accused of fraud faces extradition to UK after Lisbon arrest
