In Moscow, a man was charged with forgery of Ernst Neizvestny's works.

Maxim Koshkarev, a serviceman of one of the divisions of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, has been charged in Moscow, suspected of organizing the sale of fake works posing as works by the Soviet sculptor, graphic artist and painter Ernst Neizvestny. This was reported on Friday, May 29, on the website of the Investigative Committee of Russia.

"He is accused of illegal use of copyright objects, as well as the acquisition, storage and transportation of counterfeit copies of works for sale, as well as fraud on an especially large scale (paragraphs "b", "c" of part 3 of Article 146 and part 4 of Article 159 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation)," the text says.

According to the investigation, in the period from 2020 to 2026, the person involved in the criminal group organized the production of at least 30 art objects without the consent of the copyright holders. Subsequently, the attackers sold the paintings and sculptures to private collectors living in the capital and its region, St. Petersburg, the Murmansk region and abroad. The amount they received from such transactions amounted to at least 90 million rubles.

As part of the investigative procedures, searches were conducted, including at the State Tretyakov Gallery. The security forces seized 37 paintings and 10 sculptures and sent them for a technical and technological forensic examination to identify the true authorship. At the end of the events, the authorized persons confirmed that Koshkarev was fully involved in the crime.

At the request of the military investigator, the court chose a measure of restraint related to the restriction of freedom in relation to the accused. To ensure the execution of the verdict and civil lawsuits, Koshkarev's property was seized in the amount of more than 128 million rubles. The criminal case is still being investigated.

On April 28, employees of the Federal Customs Service (FCS) reported the arrest of a French citizen who stole a collection of gold coins worth more than 53 million rubles for sale in Russia. The perpetrator was identified in cooperation with representatives of the Federal Security Service (FSB) and the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation. It was noted that his potential product had previously been exhibited at the Saint-Remy Museum. The stolen items included gold coins from the time of the Roman Empire and the reign of Napoleon III.