Federal officials have seized a 1909 Picasso painting at the request of the Italian government, which said its owners face embezzlement and fraud charges in Italy.
Homeland Security officials on Monday announced the seizure, which took place May 21 in New York, where the painting, “Compotier et Tasse,†had been offered for private sale at the price of $11.5 million.
The couple who had the painting, Gabriella Amati, and her late husband, Angelo Maj, are alleged â€" along with a public official in Naples, Italy - to have employed schemes to “misappropriate tax receipts collected for Naples by companies the couple controlled,†the authorities said in a statement.
In addition, Italian prosecutors have accused Ms. Amato and Mr. Maj of carrying out schemes “to embezzle Naples’ tax revenue, including the use of fraudulent service contracts, forged accounting records, inflated operational expenses and fraudulently claimed refunds to Naples taxpayers,†he statement said.
The authorities said they were working to return the Picasso to Italy.
“Restraining this valuable artwork is an effort to help recover some of the estimated $44 million that this couple stole from the tax-paying citizens of Naples,†said John T. Morton, the director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
