A Miami pastor pleaded not guilty in Manhattan today to trying to sell five counterfeit Damien Hirst works for $185,000 to an undercover cop posing as an art buyer.
Kevin Sutherland, 45, knew full well that his two “Spin” paintings and three limited edition “Dot” prints were fakes because Sotheby’s had already warned him that one of the paintings was bogus, prosecutors argue.
Sutherland, in turn, has told cops that he had no idea that any of the works were fake.
It was Sotheby’s that first sounded the alarm on Sutherland, a colorful character who runs his own non-denominational church and dabbles in art dealing and real estate.
Sutherland had given one of his “Spin” paintings to Sotheby’s in December, in hopes of having it auctioned. But the auction house ran it past Hirst’s London studio, which determined it was a counterfeit and called the DA’s office, prosecutors said.
When an undercover cop later approached Sutherland — pretending he was looking works by Hirst — Sutherland negotiated a $185,000 price for all five paintings even after getting warned by Sotheby’s that the one “Spin” painting was fake, prosecutors said.
“There are a lot of facts that have not come out yet, and he maintains his innocence and looks forward to his day in court,” Sutherland’s lawyer, Sanford Talkin, said after court.
Sutherland is due back in court April 25.
“New York’s art scene has long been an important part of the city’s culture and economy, and my office will continue to rigorously protect the integrity of our city’s art market,” DA Cyrus Vance said in a written statement.
In the past three years, Vance has prosecuted the alleged thefts of works by Salvatore Dali, Claude Mont and Fernand Leger, and negotiated guilty pleas by disgraced Salander-O’Reilly Gallery bigs Lawrence Salander and Leigh Morse in a $120 million art fraud scam.