The final defendant in a major investigation into a counterfeiting ring that produced fake Alberto Giacometti sculptures in Germany has been handed a nine-year sentence for fraud, according to local press reports. The case revolved around the seizure of more than 1,000 suspect objects from a warehouse in Mainz in August 2009, and around 150 further sculptures from various locations around Germany in subsequent months, according to Stuttgart public prosecutor Mirja Feldmann. The defendant had posed as an imperial count and told would-be buyers that the works came from a secret cache built up by the sculptor’s younger brother, Diego, whom he alleged was a friend. He wrote his thoughts in a series of books, including Diego’s Revenge (first edition, 2004), penned by “Count Waldstein”, which he presented to collectors as provenance.
• Originally appeared in The Art Newspaper as "Last Giacometti forger jailed in Germany"
