sushma sareen complaint

7/22/2019 Sushma Sareen Complaint

1/6

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Sushma Sareen (F 60),

Defendant.

FELONY

ADA Matthew Boguanos

(212) 335-9323

?

~ ~ ~ / ~

Special Agent Brent Easter, Shield 3014

of

the Department ofl Homeland

Security, Homeland Security Investigations, states as follows:

The defendant is charged with:

PL 165.54

Criminal Possession of Stolen

First Degree

(defendant 1: 4 counts)

On or

about November 1, 2011 at about 12:00 P.M., at 1 Hogan tee in the

County and State

of

New York, the defendant knowingly possessed stolen pro erty with a

value in excess of one million dollars with intent to benefit a person other than owner of

the property and to impede recovery by an owner thereof.

The jat al basis

for

this

charge

is as follows:

The defendant knowingly possessed stolen property with a value in excess ofJone million

dollars with intent to benefit a person other

than

an owner

of

the property

a n ~

to impede

recovery by an owner thereof.

The offenses were committed under the following circumstances:

I - I

Deponent states that since approximately 2007, deponent has been signed to a

squad responsible for investigating, among other things, money laundering, s uggling and

importation

of

contraband, cultural property crimes, art f r a u d and crimes volving the

interstate

sale

and transportati9n

of

stolen art. As a Special Agent, deponen has led

or

joined teams

of

agents andffficers in the execution

of

search and arrest warrant seeking the

arrest

of

individuals and the recovery

of

property and evidence associated with illegal

importations and exportations, and with the interstate and foreign transportatio and

sale of

stolen goods.

D e p o n ~ n t

has also seized evidence and property during the xecution of

judicially-authorized warrants.

Deponent states the following, in part, on personal

k n o w l e d g ~

based on

participation in this investigation and experience as a Special Agent with the Dqpartment

of

2D 3NYD77D96


2/6

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CRIMINAL COURT

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.Ci:::y OF {..j fi.\1V YORK

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COUNTY OF NE\Y/ YORK

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PDOPLE

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-against-

FELONY

Sushma Sareen (F 60),.

ADA

Matthew Bog


3/6

CRIMINAL COURT OFTHE CITY OF NE

'\I'JYORK

COUNTY OF

NEW

YORK

P:ge : o t 6

-..

.:::

THE PEOPLE

OF THE

STATE OF

~ J i

R I ~

l

.

-against-

Sushma Sareen (F 60),

FELONY

ADA Matthew Bogaanos

Defendant.

1

(212) 335-9323

conversations about illicit cultural propetty. Informant

1

met with an employtof rt

of

the Past ( informant #2''), known to the Office of the District Attorney, who o ered to sell

a stolen 12th Century Chola bronze statue known

as

the Shiva of Nataraja e $3.5M

Shiva ) for approximately $3.5 million.

Deponent states that on or about

27

September 2011, informant

~ m t

with

Kapoor

at

the

Art of

the Past, at 1242 Madison Avenue, New York, New York. uring this

meeting, informant #1 was equipped with an audio recording device. A cording to

informant

1

and to deponent's review

of

that recording, Kapoor showed, an offered to

sell to, informant 1 at that meeting the

3.5M

Shiva for approximately $3.5

also showed off a 5 million Shiva of Natarja ( the 5M Shiva ). Both Shivas

same room but in opposing wall cabinets. In substance and in part, Kapoor indi

informant 1 that he had been holding both of the items for a few years, and fither stated

that he expected the items to appreciate by 10 to

15

percent per year from their lcurrent fair

market values

of

$3.5 and 5 million.

In

addition to informant

1

s observations, Deponent reviewed sever

containing photographs

of

both Shivas; specifically, Art

of

the Past's March 2 0 ~ catalogue;

a publication from Asia Week New York 2009, indicating that Kapoor was exhi iring a 12th

Century Chola period item that appears to be the $3.5M Shiva; and a publicatio from Asia

Week New York 2010, containing a picture

of

Kapoor with what also appe to be the

3 .5M Shiva.

I

I

Deponent also reviewed emails from the rt of the Past email ace unt. These

emails were obtained pursuant to a search warrant issued by the Supreme Co

of

New

York

City,

on March 16, 2013. Emails dated around April 23, 2011, \howed an ther gallery

owner

in

New York inquiring abou,t and attempting to sell for commission th $5M Shiva

possessed by Art

of

the Past.}\etween July and October

of

2011, yet another

in

vidual was

in email negotiations with Kapoor to purchase the 5M Shiva along with two ther Chola- ,

Period bronze statues: a $2.5 million statue known as the Uma Parameshvari, the $2.5M

Uma ) and a 3.5 million statue known as the Uma-Parvat:i. ( the $3.5M Uma' . Deponent

has learned from Kapoor's business records that were seized pursuant to a

se

ch warrant

and confirmed by Informants

1-2,

that both Shivas and both Umas were Jist d

in

Art

of

the Past catalogues.


4/6

CRIMINAL COURT OF

THE

CGY )F NEW YORK

COUN1Y OF NEW YORK

- ~ - - .

THE PEOPLE Of THE STATE OF NEW

YORK

I

I FELONY

-against-

Page 4 of 6

T..... .:

Sushma Sareen

(F

60),

ADA Matthew Bogaanos

Defendant.

1

(212)

335-9323

Deponent, along with other members

of

DHS-HSI, executed

authorized search warrant on January 5, 2012, at two locations for which

owner: l)'Art of the Past and

2)

units 535, 733, 734, and 736 of Sofia Storage, 16

Street, New York, New York, 10024.

judicially

oor is the

West 83rd

Deponent states that according to Art of the Past's own website, u b ~ s h Kappor

was the owner

of Art

of the Past; that according to U.S. Customs records d financial

records that deponent has reviewed, Subhash Kapoor appears to be the owner o Art of the

Past

in

that he is the signatory for the business; and that according to

New

York State

corporate records, Subhash Kapoor was the principal of Art of the Past.

According to Informant

#2, and confirmed by informant

#3,

known t ~ t h Office

of

the District Attorney and who has been familiar with the business practices of Kapoor

and

Art of

the Past for more than a decade, that defendant Sushma Sareen (Suba h Kapoor's

sister) currently has the power

of attorney for Art of the Past and is running e business

with another individual named Mamta Sager (Subash Kapoor's daughter).

Deponent states that during the execution of the January 5, 2012, se

at Art of the Past, a CD with photographs of both Shivas and both Umas (an 10 others),

the meta-data

of

which indicate that the photos were taken on February 26, 2008. Also

seized pursuant to that warrant were a series of shipping documents for thos 14 statues

(both Shivas and both

Um as

and

10

others) showing how each of the statues as illegally

e x p o ~ e d

from India to Hong Kong by the subterfuge of including the antiq statues

in

otherwise legal shipments of new Indian artistic handicrafts.

Also recovered during this search were letters addressed

to

Aaron

Fr

eman from

Subash Kapoor. The first l ~ t t r was dated November 3, 2011, and instructed Aar n Freeman

to give back 4 items to Selina (.Mohamad] Bronze Dancers, which are in the 4 closets.

In

another letter to Freeman from Kapoor dated November

6,

2011, it reads

4

cers bronze

in 4 closets= 2 pairs nataraj conserts

[sic].

The deponent has learned from I ottnant

#2

that these 4 bronzes are the two Shivas and two Umas that are the subject of thi complaint.

Deponent is further informed that Aaron Freeman, Subash Kapoor, Sushma areen, and

Selina Mohamed

all

knew

that the items were stolen. Freeman had the items mo ed to Selina


5/6

CRIMlNi

\L COURT OF

THE CITY

OF NEW

YORK

COUNTY OF

NEW

YORK

THE

PEOPLE

OF THE STATE

OF

NEW YORK

-against-

FELONY

Sushma Sareen

(F

60),

ADA Matthew

Bog


6/6

CRIMINJ\L COURT

OF THE

CITY OF

NEW

YORK

COUNTY OF NEW YORK

THE

PEOPLE OF THE

STATE

OF

NEW YORK

-against-

FELONY

Sushma Sareen

F

60),

ADA Matthew

Bog

sushma sareen complaint

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