NEW YORK CITY — Karolina Bankowska, 26, and her father Erwin Bankowski, 50, pleaded guilty in the Eastern District of New York to defrauding victims of at least $2 million through a counterfeit art scheme. The pair faced charges of wire fraud conspiracy and misrepresenting Native American–produced goods, the latter stemming from their duplication of works by Luiseño artist Fritz Scholder.

Federal prosecutors said the two tried to pass off at least 200 counterfeit paintings to unwitting buyers, including some of New York's most prominent fine art auction houses. The forgeries, reproductions of lesser-known works by artists such as Banksy, Andy Warhol and Pablo Picasso, were produced in Poland by an unnamed co-conspirator. Prosecutors said the father and daughter began commissioning a Polish artist in 2020 to create the fake artworks.

"For years, these defendants painted themselves as purveyors of fine art while selling lies on canvas to unsuspecting collectors. Today's convictions strip away the varnish and reveal the fraud underneath," said Joseph Nocella Jr, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York.

The defendants face the possibility of more than three years in prison under federal guidelines, $1.9 million in restitution, and possible deportation to Poland. Using antique paper, they forged gallery stamps bearing the names of since-shuttered galleries to attach to the paintings. The fake stamp on one forged Andrew Wyeth painting bore the name and address of M. Knoedler & Co., a gallery that closed in 2011, and listed its year as 1976 but included a zoning address number that had been phased out in 1962.

A purported fake by Richard Mayhew sold at DuMouchelles last October for $160,000, and the pair sold a fake Andy Warhol work for $5,500. In March 2023, representatives for artist Raimonds Staprans identified a forged painting titled "Triple Boats" at an auction house; a few days after the representatives contacted the auction house, the forged painting sold for $60,000.

"Conduct was wrong and I am guilty," Bankowska said. Bankowski apologized through a Polish interpreter.

"The only unusual thing about this case is that the forgers got caught," said Erin Thompson, a professor of art crime at the City University of New York. "People think of the art world as a genteel place full of cultured people who just want to share the wonder of beautiful art. You should assume there are a lot more fakes out there," she added.