Carter Reese, a 77-year-old resident of Reading, Pennsylvania, was sentenced to 60 days in prison for his involvement in an art fraud scheme. United States District Judge Jeffrey L. Schmehl also ordered Reese to serve two years of supervised release, including four months on home detention. In addition, Reese must pay a $50,000 fine and restitution totaling $186,125.
United States Attorney David Metcalf announced the sentencing. According to court documents and statements made by the defendant, from February 2019 through March 2021, Reese sold and attempted to sell artwork he falsely claimed were genuine pieces by well-known artists such as Francis Bacon, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Jean Cocteau, Keith Haring, Fernand Léger, Roy Lichtenstein, Joan Miró, Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol and others. The works were not created by these artists; Reese knew they were counterfeit.
Reese was charged with one count each of wire fraud and mail fraud in May and pleaded guilty that same month.
The investigation was conducted by the FBI’s Art Crime Team from both the Philadelphia and Miami field offices. Assistant United States Attorneys Ruth Mandelbaum and Jason Grenell prosecuted the case.
“United States Attorney David Metcalf announced that Carter Reese, 77, of Reading, Pennsylvania, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Jeffrey L. Schmehl to 60 days in prison, two years of supervised release with four months on home detention, a $50,000 fine, and restitution of $186,125 in connection with a scheme in which Reese defrauded customers by making false representations about the source and authenticity of certain art purportedly created by prominent artists.”
