The Mossos d’Esquadra have dismantled a workshop and several points of sale from which fake works by the artist Banksy were distributed. Due to these events, they are investigating four people who are accused of crimes of continued fraud and against intellectual property.
In July 2023, investigators from the Central Historical Heritage Unit of the police force detected the sale of these works to online platforms, auction rooms and antique dealers. In August, the first inspections and interventions of the works were carried out to check traceability and locate where they came from. Nine works were intervened, some already sold.
The traceability of operations allowed the main distributor to be identified. This diversified sales in specialized stores, in auction rooms in Barcelona and from very popular websites.
In December 2023, the workshop where the works were created was inspected. It was an apartment in Zaragoza. From there, a couple of young followers of Banksy’s urban art, and with financial problems, created works on cardboard to which they added graphic accessories that made them more attractive. The agents seized stencils, ink stamps, spray and tickets to the Dismaland amusement park. The works were sold at a maximum price of 80 euros, an amount that the Mossos considered reasonable and could be classified as a souvenir price.
The main person investigated is the person who played the role of distributor, a person with knowledge of the functioning of the graphic work market and its distribution. The Mossos point out that it introduced an unusual, successful product to the market, adding some accessories that generated more deception such as brand stamps and stickers. With the interested collaboration of a distribution entity, they prepared a type of certificates that individually indicated that the work had been created by the artist’s hand within the Dismaland project.
The police confirmed through the company Pest Control, the only official body that authenticates works by Banksy, that the works and certificates were false. Thus, the person responsible for the certifications is also being investigated for his collaboration. The two main investigators are people with knowledge of the art world and who have been dedicated to it for years.
There are 25 documented sales, with victims located throughout Spanish territory, Germany, Switzerland, the United States and Scotland. Some victims paid 1,500 euros per work and more than 1,0000 euros have been defrauded. The investigation remains open and more victims or new arrests are not ruled out.
The works were announced as coming from the Dismaland event, an amusement park created by Banksy in Somerset (England) between August 22 and September 27, 2015. It is speculated that the artist would have hidden his works so that visitors could find them . Hence, the works sold were accompanied by photocopied receipts for tickets to the park.
The works were made on spray cardboard, using templates and incorporating elements that generate confidence in buyers, such as ink stamps and stickers. These works appeared in abundance and appeared to have a common origin due to the certifications that accompanied them, the stickers and other marks of creation. The observed characteristics and the volume of supply made the researchers suspicious.
