Men “wanted £4.25m” for return of Da Vinci work
Five men have appeared in court accused of demanding £4.25m for the safe return of a Leonardo da Vinci painting.
The Madonna with the Yarnwinder was taken from Drumlanrig Castle, near Thornhill, Dumfries and Galloway, in August 2003. Its disappearance from the stately home became Britain’s biggest art theft; an international hunt for the painting followed and it appeared on the FBI’s top 10 most wanted pieces of stolen art.
Robert Graham, 56, John Doyle, 59, and Marshall Ronald, 52, all from Lancashire, appeared at the High Court in Glasgow along with Calum Jones, 43, from Kilmacolm, Renfrewshire, and David Boyce, 61, from Airdrie in Lanarkshire. The men are accused of conspiring to extort or attempting to extort money by demanding the safe return of the masterpiece. They are also charged with attempting to defeat the ends of justice.
Four of the men – Mr Graham and Mr Doyle, who are both from Ormskirk, Mr Jones and Mr Boyce – pleaded not guilty to the offences. Mr Ronald, of Skelmersdale, made no plea.
It is alleged that the offences happened between 18 July and 4 October last year.
The men are accused of contacting a loss adjuster, whom they believed to be acting for the insurers of the painting, and stating that they could return the artwork within 72 hours. It is alleged they said the masterpiece would not be returned unless £2m was deposited in an account at Marshall Solicitors, formerly known as Marshall Gilby Solicitors, and a further £2.25m placed in a Swiss bank account.
The picture, which has been valued at more than £30m, belonged to the Duke of Buccleuch, who died last September after a short illness, aged 83.
Painted in oils on a small panel between 1500 and 1510, it had been in his family for two centuries. It is now in the possession of his son, the current duke.
Judge Lord Brailsford continued the case until 10 November for a further preliminary hearing. The Independent
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