Prominent Art Dealers Accused of Illegal Trafficking of Antiquities Worth $3m

The Manhattan District Attorney, Alvin Bragg, has accused two prominent art dealers, Subhash Kapoor and Nancy Wiener, of engaging in the illegal trafficking of antiquities valued at $3 million. In a recent statement, Bragg announced the return of 30 looted, sold, or illegally transferred antiquities to Cambodia and Indonesia. The repatriation ceremonies saw 27 pieces returned to Phnom Penh and three to Jakarta.

Among the returned artifacts was a bronze statue of the Hindu deity Shiva, which had been looted from Cambodia, and a stone bas-relief sculpture depicting two royal figures from the Majapahit empire, stolen from Indonesia. Bragg specifically implicated Kapoor and Wiener in the illegal trafficking of these antiquities.

Subhash Kapoor, an American-Indian art dealer, has been under investigation by the United States justice system for over a decade. Accused of running a network that trafficked stolen items from Southeast Asia, Kapoor was arrested in Germany in 2011 and subsequently sent to India, where he stood trial and received a 13-year prison sentence in November 2022. Kapoor has denied the charges of conspiracy to traffic in stolen works of art.

New York City has long been recognized as a major hub for the trafficking of stolen and looted antiquities. In recent years, numerous works have been seized from museums, including the prestigious Metropolitan Museum of Art, as well as private collectors. Bragg emphasized the ongoing investigation into the extensive trafficking networks that target Southeast Asian antiquities, stating that there is still much work to be done.

Nancy Wiener, another American art dealer, was sentenced in 2021 for trafficking in stolen works of art. Although she initially sought to sell the bronze Shiva statue, Wiener eventually donated the piece to the Denver Museum of Art in Colorado in 2007. However, the antiquity was seized by the New York courts in 2023.

The repatriation of these artifacts has been welcomed by Cambodia’s ambassador to the US, Keo Chhea, who described it as a renewal of commitment between nations to safeguard their shared heritage. Similarly, Indonesia’s representative in New York, Consul General Winanto Adi, praised Bragg’s efforts, considering it a precious gift as the US and Indonesia celebrated the 75th anniversary of their diplomatic relations.