Stolen Picasso Print Found by Landlord in Vacant Milwaukee Apartment

Gallery owner Bill DeLind thought the artwork was gone for good after it vanished from his shop in 2018. But an observant landlord cleaning out an evicted tenant’s apartment spotted the piece hanging on a wall, triggering a police recovery that brought the signed etching back to its rightful owner.

The Accidental Discovery in a Vacant Milwaukee Apartment

The recovery began when Milwaukee landlord Tim Dertz told WISN-TV that he found the print while cleaning out an apartment of someone who had been evicted according to the reporting. The framed artwork was hanging in what Dertz described to the Wisconsin ABC affiliate as a weird spot, covered in thick dust that suggested it had been sitting undisturbed for a very long time.

It was kind of in a weird spot hanging on a wall. It looked like it had been there for a long, long time because it had tons of dust across the top of it.

Unsure of what he had found, Dertz said he showed it to an antique dealer friend who recognized it as a Picasso and said it appeared to be the one DeLind reported stolen in 2018.

Authentication and Verification by Authorities

After receiving the artwork from Dertz, law enforcement officials initiated a verification process. Milwaukee police say a community member brought the artwork to them on Aug. 5, and on Thursday, an authenticator confirmed it is the stolen piece known as the Trero 1949 print taken during the 2018 gallery burglary.

When police called DeLind to inspect the recovered artwork, the gallery owner experienced immediate disbelief and relief. Examining the physical piece, he found that the sticker from his DeLind Fine Art Appraisals was still on the back of the framed print, just as it had been placed there in 2018.

DeLind emphasized the emotional weight of the recovery, noting that his former business partner, who died in February, was distraught over the theft in 2018 and called police every year on the anniversary of the crime asking that they publicize it again in the hope the Picasso could be found.

He would have been over the moon about this. It was special to him.

Valuation and Ongoing Investigation

DeLind said he guessed that the value hasn’t changed much since then.

The artwork remains in possession of Milwaukee police while the client who had commissioned it for sale with his art gallery works it out with his insurance company, DeLind said while insurance and ownership details are sorted out. Meanwhile, the Milwaukee police department said in an email on Friday that the statute of limitations for theft and property crimes is generally six years but the case remains under investigation, while Caroline Clancy, a spokesperson for the FBI in Milwaukee, declined to comment.