Met Museum officials spoke to US attorney's office amid claims 12 works stolen ...

Met Museum officials spoke to US attorney's office amid claims 12 works stolen ...
Met Museum officials spoke to US attorney's office amid claims 12 works stolen ...

The Metropolitan Museum of Art has sent representatives to meet with prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney's office, amid reports that their collection could contain 12 objects which were stolen from Cambodia.

The New York City institution is one of five named in reports as possessing art bought from a British dealer, Douglas Latchford.

Latchford died in August 2020, aged 88, and was facing charges of trading in stolen antiquities at the time.

Earlier this month the Pandora Papers - a trove of 11.9 million leaked documents, detailing the hidden assets of some of the world's most influential people - revealed the lengths to which Latchford went to hide his trail.

In 2011 he and his family had turned to a company specialized in helping wealthy families create offshore companies and trusts, allowing them to evade taxes and government oversight. 

The Pandora Papers lifted the lid on his records, showing that he had sold directly to five museums - the British Museum, Denver Art Museum, Cleveland Museum of Art, the National Gallery of Australia, and the Met.

A statue depicting the god Harihara is pictured. A similar statue was bought by the Met in 1977, and investigators now believe it may have been stolen from Cambodia

A statue depicting the god Harihara is pictured. A similar statue was bought by the Met in 1977, and investigators now believe it may have been stolen from Cambodia

The Met, the most-visited museum in the United States and one of the top ten most visited in the world, is now in talks with prosecutors regarding the provenance of the 12 works

The Met, the most-visited museum in the United States and one of the top ten most visited in the world, is now in talks with prosecutors regarding the provenance of the 12 works

Douglas Latchford is seen in June 2009 shaking hands with the deputy prime minister of Cambodia, Sok An. Latchford was indicted in 2019 and died a year later, in 2020

Douglas Latchford is seen in June 2009 shaking hands with the deputy prime minister of Cambodia, Sok An. Latchford was indicted in 2019 and died a year later, in 2020

The Met bought 12 items from Latchford - by far the most. Denver's museum is already making plans to return their six items identified in the Pandora Papers.

An associate of Bangkok-based Latchford's was indicted in the U.S. in 2016, and Latchford himself in 2019.

The scale of Latchford's activities were laid bare by the Pandora Papers, and on Monday the Met confirmed that their representatives had met with officials from the U.S. attorney's office.

They said the meeting was sought when 'new information' about some pieces in their collection pushed them to approach the Southern District of New York, The Washington Post reported. 

'Recently, in light of new information on some pieces in our collection, we reached out to the US Attorney's office – to volunteer that we are happy to cooperate with any inquiry,' the Met said in a statement on Sunday. 

'The Met also has a long and well documented history of responding to claims regarding works of art, restituting objects where appropriate, being transparent about the provenance of works in the collection, and supporting further research and

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