Knoedler Trial Suspended Right Before Ann Freedman's Testimony
- February 09, 2016 17:26
After a lunch break on Tuesday in the high-profile Knoedler art fraud trial in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, the courtroom was packed as onlookers anticipated hearing gallery owner Michael Hammer and former gallery director, Ann Freedman, testify. When Judge Paul G. Gardephe filed in after all the lawyers, he made a surprise announcement that “due to unexpected developments," the jury was dimissed for the day and the trial would reconvene on Wednesday.
Freedman settled out of court Sunday for an undisclosed amount with plaintiffs Domenico and Eleanore De Sole, collectors who are seeking $25 million in damages after they bought a fake Mark Rothko for $8.3 million from the gallery. The trial was set to continue this week against Knoedler, and its holding company, 8-31.
Testifying before the recess on Tuesday was Ruth Blankschen, the chief financial officer for Knoedler and 8-31, who noted that art dealer Glafira Rosales, the source of the fake artworks brought into Knoedler, always wanted to be paid partly by wire, partly by check, and partly in cash. Details of Hammer's spending was also scrutinized, including 8-31's purchase of a $523,000 Mercedes for his use.
![Offering a Truce [Bested], 1895, is estimated to sell for between $1,300,000 and $1,800,000 on March 22, 2014, for The Russell: An Exhibition and Sale to Benefit the C.M. Russell Museum.](/images/c/a8/20/Dec10_Offering_a_Truce__Bested_300dpi100x100_c.jpg "Offering a Truce [Bested], 1895, is estimated to sell for between $1,300,000 and $1,800,000 on March 22, 2014, for The Russell: An Exhibition and Sale to Benefit the C.M. Russell Museum.")
