Billionaire Steinhardt surrenders $70 mln of stolen antiquities

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The lates post by  Reuters on Twitter states, 

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Source: Reuters on Twitter, 7/12/2021

NEW YORK, Dec 6 (Reuters) — U.S. hedge fund billionaire and philanthropist Michael Steinhardt has surrendered $70 million of stolen antiquities and accepted a first-of-its-kind lifetime ban on acquiring antiquities to resolve a criminal probe, Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance said on Monday.

Vance said his probe, begun in February 2017, found «compelling evidence» that the 180 antiquities were stolen from 11 countries (Bulgaria, Egypt, Greece, Iraq, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Syria, Turkey), with at least 171 passing through traffickers before Steinhardt’s purchases.

«For decades, Michael Steinhardt displayed a rapacious appetite for plundered artifacts without concern for the legality of his actions, the legitimacy of the pieces he bought and sold, or the grievous cultural damage he wrought across the globe,» Vance said in a statement.

Steinhardt, who is 81 , built his wealth running the hedge fund Steinhardt Partners, which he closed in 1995 to focus on Jewish philanthropic issues.

He is worth $1.2 billion  according to Forbes magazine.

Steinhardt denied criminal wrongdoing in resolving the matter, which ended a grand jury investigation into him.

His lawyers Andrew Levander and Theodore Wells in a joint statement said Steinhardt was pleased that the investigation has ended, and «items wrongfully taken by others will be returned to their native countries.» They also said Steinhardt may seek compensation from dealers who misled him.

Last Updated on 07.12.2021 by iskova