Trucker arrested in Goya theft

A truck driver who stole an art masterpiece from an unattended transport truck, then claimed he found it in his basement was charged with theft, authorities said.

Steven Lee Olson, 49, was charged with stealing "Children with a Cart," a 1778 painting by famed Spanish artist Francisco de Goya, federal prosecutors said Wednesday. The painting was insured at a value of about $1 million. . .

Within days, Olson contacted federal authorities through an attorney to say he found the painting in his basement, said U.S Attorney's office spokesman Michael Drewniak.

After a lengthy investigation, authorities determined that Olson, a self-employed truck driver, had lifted the piece himself, Drewniak said.

"It was a crime of opportunity that didn't pay," FBI agent Sandra Carroll said.

From the Associated Press. The local paper adds more colorful detail:

Susan Tranquada said she wasn't impressed when her boyfriend showed her an old painting last year that he said he'd found in the basement.

"When you look at it, the faces of the children, they're scary," she said Wednesday.

On Tuesday, federal authorities arrested the heavily tattooed trucker and charged him with stealing the work . . .

Tranquada said she was shocked when agents burst into their Carlstadt apartment late Tuesday as Olson sat eating takeout fried chicken in his underwear. . .

Olson, 49, was brought into federal court in Newark wearing jeans and a gray "Hog Wild" T-shirt that featured a pig on a motorcycle. . .

Olson told her he'd been rooting around their basement when he discovered the painting. He proposed hanging it in their apartment, but she refused, citing the subjects' faces.

"I wouldn't put this on my wall," she said.

So much for cunning master criminals.

Posted by David on October 25, 2007 8:06 AM