Father and daughter admit to $2M Banksy and Warhol art forgery scam

Banksy Art HOSTOMEL, UKRAINE - NOVEMBER 12: Street art of a person in a dressing gown holding a fire extinguisher and wearing a gas mask is painted on a wall of a destroyed building in Hostomel near Antonov Airport on November 12, 2022 in Kyiv Region, Ukraine. On November 11 2022, the artist Banksy announced that he had made similar art work in Borodyanka, also in Kyiv region. Civilian houses and buildings were badly damaged during the fierce fighting as the Antonov Airpot was temporarily captured by Russian forces at the start of Russias full scale invasion of Ukraine. Electricity and heating outages across Ukraine caused by missile and drone strikes to energy infrastructure have added urgency to preparations for winter. (Photo by Ed Ram/Getty Images) (Ed Ram/Getty Images)

By Laurel Lee

A father-daughter duo has admitted to orchestrating an elaborate art forgery scheme that defrauded New York City’s most prominent fine art auction houses and unwitting buyers out of at least $2 million.

▶ LISTEN TO ORLANDO’S MORNING NEWS EXPRESS PODCAST ON WDBO

The operation involved creating meticulously designed imitations of artworks by celebrated artists such as Banksy, Andy Warhol, and Andrew Wyeth, passing them off as genuine.

The forgeries were forged in Poland using antique paper and fabricated stamps of defunct galleries to lend an air of authenticity.

Karolina Bankowska, 26, and her father Erwin Bankowski, 50, face the possibility of more than three years in prison, $1.9 million in restitution, and potential deportation to Poland.

The scheme has sent ripples through the art world, shedding light on a prevalent issue of art forgery.

Click here to download our free news, weather and traffic app. And click here to subscribe to our daily 3 Big Things newsletter.