New York con man accused of stealing Degas bronze

NEW YORK - A convicted con artist was indicted in Manhattan today on charges of stealing a Degas sculpture worth about US$600,000 from a wealthy art collector and arranging to sell it.

Thomas Doyle, 49, was accused of grand larceny and criminal possession of stolen property for taking the Degas bronze of a dancer looking at the sole of her right foot and titled "Danseuse Regardant le Plant de son Pied Droit."

He faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted.

Prosecutors said Doyle stole the Degas from its owner, Norman Alexander, 74, using a ruse that he intended to have the authenticated.

Posing as a member of a prominent family of art dealers and collectors, Doyle gained the confidence of Alexander, who wanted to sell his art collection and townhouse on Manhattan's upper east side, and offered to find him a buyer.

Doyle took the Degas under the pretext of having it authenticated and arranged to sell it to an antique dealer for US$225,000, according to the indictment filed by Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau.

When Alexander asked for the bronze to be returned, Doyle stalled him and told him the piece had been damaged in transit. Alexander eventually notified the police.

"He's a very talented con man," Morgenthau said of Doyle, who was convicted in February 2000 of transporting stolen goods in a US$200,000 swindle of a Tennessee woman and served two years in prison.

Doyle was arraigned in Manhattan Supreme Court but did not enter a plea. He was remanded to a federal facility until an August 10 hearing.

- REUTERS