Art forgery racket dismantled in Thessaloniki

Police in Thessaloniki dismantled an art forgery racket that was working out of a gallery in the city center, just a day before it was planning to put up several bogus paintings for sale in an online auction.

According to preliminary reports, the racket specialized in paintings that claimed to be by prominent Greek artists, including Yannis Gaitis, Alekos Fassianos, Opy Zouni and Dimitris Mytaras, among others.

State broadcaster ERT said that police raided the gallery in downtown Thessaloniki and an adjacent building on Wednesday, seizing dozens of paintings that were taken away to be evaluated.
Three suspects have been arrested.

More details on the case are expected to be announced by the police on Thursday.