Valuable painting stolen 13 years ago, recovered in traffic stop
Post-impressionist French artist, Gaston La Touche’s painting “Woman Under The Trees,” valued at $40,000, was stolen 13 years ago in a huge art burglary, and was recently recovered during a routine traffic stop. As reported by KPRC Local 2 , Officer Russell Brown of the Bellaire Police Department stopped a driver who ran through a red light and saw the artwork in the backseat of the vehicle.
The police officer told the station, “It appeared, clearly that something more was going on with this piece of art than just a regular traffic stop.” So, officer Brown asked the driver about the ownership of the painting, and he asserted that the art belonged to him. The cop was not convinced so he followed his instincts and searched for information about the painting.
Brown said, "If you’re dealing with something like a stolen television or a gun, most of the time there's a serial number, or some sort of identifying marks. In this case, this is an unsigned piece of art." His research revealed that the piece was indeed stolen from a Houston family in a Christmas week burglary in 2000.
So the officer returned to the driver and convinced him to turn over the painting to the police no questions asked. There were no charges filed and no arrests were made. La Touche’s painting is at the police department and will be reunited with the rightful Houston owners.
More info: KPRC
