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| Statue forger jailed for art con | Statue forger jailed for art con |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| A 47-year-old man has been jailed for more than four years for what police said was "the most sustained and diverse" art forgery case ever. | A 47-year-old man has been jailed for more than four years for what police said was "the most sustained and diverse" art forgery case ever. |
| Shaun Greenhalgh, from Bolton, passed off scores of faked artefacts and artworks as genuine. | Shaun Greenhalgh, from Bolton, passed off scores of faked artefacts and artworks as genuine. |
| His mother Olive, 83, was given a 12 month suspended sentence for her part in the con. His father, George, 84, will be sentenced at a later date. | His mother Olive, 83, was given a 12 month suspended sentence for her part in the con. His father, George, 84, will be sentenced at a later date. |
| All three admitted fraud and money laundering at Bolton Crown Court. | All three admitted fraud and money laundering at Bolton Crown Court. |
| The court heard how a fake Egyptian statue was "knocked up in three weeks in a garden shed" by Shaun Greenhalgh, who cared for his parents at the home they shared in Bromley Cross. | The court heard how a fake Egyptian statue was "knocked up in three weeks in a garden shed" by Shaun Greenhalgh, who cared for his parents at the home they shared in Bromley Cross. |
| Bolton Council paid thousands of pounds for the so-called Amarna Princess believing it was 3,300 years old - but three years later experts found it was counterfeit. | Bolton Council paid thousands of pounds for the so-called Amarna Princess believing it was 3,300 years old - but three years later experts found it was counterfeit. |
| Your talent was misapplied to the ends of dishonest gain Judge William Morris How the con worked | |
| The statue was said to represent one of the daughters of Pharaoh Akhenaten and Queen Nefertiti, the mother of Tutankhamun. | The statue was said to represent one of the daughters of Pharaoh Akhenaten and Queen Nefertiti, the mother of Tutankhamun. |
| Judge William Morris, sentencing Shaun Greenhalgh to four years and eight months in prison, said the three had conspired together to defraud the art world for 17 years. | Judge William Morris, sentencing Shaun Greenhalgh to four years and eight months in prison, said the three had conspired together to defraud the art world for 17 years. |
| He told Greenhalgh: "This was an ambitious conspiracy of long duration based on your undoubted talent and based on the sophistication of the deceptions underpinning the sales and attempted sales. | He told Greenhalgh: "This was an ambitious conspiracy of long duration based on your undoubted talent and based on the sophistication of the deceptions underpinning the sales and attempted sales. |
| "I speak of your talent but not in admiration. Your talent was misapplied to the ends of dishonest gain." | "I speak of your talent but not in admiration. Your talent was misapplied to the ends of dishonest gain." |
| Peter Cadwallader, prosecuting, said Greenhalgh's house in Bolton was "the centre of a major cottage industry in the production of fake antiquities and art". | |
| He described Shaun Greenhalgh as a "gifted artist", and said his father, George Greenhalgh, had "fooled experts from all the great auction houses as well as people from Vienna and New York". | |
| The trio had probably made £850,000 over the last two decades and could have earned at least £2m more, he told the court. | |
| 'Spelling mistakes' | |
| The scam came to light after George Greenhalgh presented three faked Assyrian reliefs - ancient stone wall art - to the British Museum for examination in 2005. | The scam came to light after George Greenhalgh presented three faked Assyrian reliefs - ancient stone wall art - to the British Museum for examination in 2005. |
| Errors in the cuneiform script - in effect, spelling mistakes - prompted museum officials to doubt their authenticity. | Errors in the cuneiform script - in effect, spelling mistakes - prompted museum officials to doubt their authenticity. |
| They alerted the Metropolitan Police's Art and Antiques Unit which began an investigation. | They alerted the Metropolitan Police's Art and Antiques Unit which began an investigation. |
| Speaking after the hearing, Stephanie Crossley, assistant director of adult services at Bolton Council, said the purchase of the fake had been "regrettable". | |
| But the council had carefully followed established practice in buying the statue, she added. |