“It does not matter whether an antiquity or painting was stolen ten years ago or ten thousand years ago – a stolen object is a stolen object,” said District Attorney Bragg. “This investigation makes clear that looting and trafficking is far from a thing of the past, and we will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to aggressively root out and dismantle these schemes.” 

“I am thrilled that two more drawings are now being returned to the relatives of Fritz Grünbaum. The fact that we have been able to return ten pieces that were looted by the Nazis speaks to the dogged advocacy of his relatives to ensure these beautiful artworks could finally return home. Let us use this moment as an opportunity to honor and preserve the extraordinary legacy of Mr. Grünbaum – a life that we should never forget,” said District Attorney Bragg. 

“This is an exquisite set of 30 antiquities that represents the extraordinary depth and beauty of Greece’s cultural heritage. The cases are a team effort and I am extremely grateful to each of the analysts and prosecutors in my Office who put in tireless work to bring these pieces home. We will continue to aggressively investigate those who are using Manhattan as a base to traffic stolen antiquities,” said District Attorney Bragg.

“These are exquisite pieces that represent the breadth of Türkiye’s cultural heritage, said District Attorney Bragg. “I am proud that during my administration we have returned 90 antiquities to Türkiye, valued at more than $60 million and I thank our partners for their continued collaboration.” 

“We will continue to target antiquities trafficking networks no matter how complex. I thank our outstanding team of analysts and attorneys, along with our partners at HSI, for recovering and returning these beautiful pieces,” said District Attorney Bragg.