Rich Russians’ Art Buying Is Target of US Crackdown on Trade-Sanction Cheats
- New York auction houses get subpoenas for years of records
- US task force expands focus on ‘professional sanction evaders’
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The US crackdown on trade-sanction violators is turning to the art world as authorities track down works bought or sold by ultra-rich Russian tycoons.
Through a series of subpoenas, federal prosecutors in New York are demanding high-end auction houses in the US turn over years of records as they seek to determine if art was smuggled offshore or if proceeds from sales were transferred illegally, according to a person familiar with the investigation.