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Something went wrong with the Evening Headlines email. The art buyer who advised the billionaire on buying works by famed artists like Goya and Velazquez is accused of defrauding a Russian billionaire out of tens of millions of dollars. Sara Shudofsky told the jury that the billionaire was trying to make others pay for what they had done to him.
After spending hundreds of millions of dollars to buy art masterpieces without taking the most basic steps to protect himself from a broker who cheated him, the magnate had a good reason to be angry with himself. The attorney said that Sotheby's didn't know anything about the lies.
She spoke after Daniel Kornstein said that a London-based executive was part of a group of executives who were involved in an elaborate fraud. The company made a lot of money as a result of participating in the fraud.
The trial is likely to provide a glimpse into how high-stakes transactions involving art enthusiasts worldwide develop and their importance to the operations of auction houses that rely heavily on their reputations as they match up some of the world's wealthiest investors. The man who bought the Palm Beach mansion from Donald Trump is expected to testify. When he was asked about his ties to the country, Trump said the deal was the closest he came to Russia. The judge urged the lawyers to work towards a settlement to avoid a trial that would be expensive, risky and potentially embarrassing to both sides.
The case stems from the acquisition of a world-class art collection by two of his companies. He relied heavily on Yves Bouvier, an art broker, to carry out the purchases because he claimed he could save him money by handling negotiations for art in return for a 2% commission. The lawyer said that before long, Bouvier became a trusted friend of the billionaire, and he attended small birthday parties for him and his daughter. The con man who bought the works of art from Sotheby's was a man named Boulier. If you are operating in darkness, and the auction house knows about it, you have no way of learning about it. In all, he made $164 million through his "hidden markups" and another $6.4 million through his 2% commission. The lawyer told the jury that documents would prove that the executives at the auction house knew what was happening. A message was sent to a lawyer for Bouvier to inquire about the accusations against him and a settlement that was reached with a Russian businessman in a Swiss court. Picasso's "Homme Assis Au Verre" and Rodin's "Le Baiser" are two of the art pieces that had been accused of being sold to the wrong person. The work at issue in the trial was de Vinci's depiction of Christ as "Saviour of the World", which was bought by Bouvier for $83 million, only to resell it to him for over $127 million. It went for $450 million, becoming the most expensive painting ever sold at an auction. The Modigliani sculpture and paintings by Gustav Klimt and Rene Magritte are two of the artworks that will be addressed at the trial. The Trump administration released a list of Russian politicians and businessmen it said were linked to Putin. He was not included on a list of Russians who were sanctioned after Russia attacked Ukraine, and his lawyer told the jury that his client has not lived in Russia in 30 years.