Sushma Sareen Complaint
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Transcript of Sushma Sareen Complaint
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7/22/2019 Sushma Sareen Complaint
1/6
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. . .
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C
RIMUL
L
( Ot
iRT OF
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. : C
nY
OF NEW YORK
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~ a g a i m ; t -
Sushma Sareen (F 60),
Defendant.
FELONY
ADA Matthew Boguanos
(212) 335-9323
?
~ ~ ~ / ~
Special Agent Brent Easter, Shield 3014
of
the Department ofl Homeland
Security, Homeland Security Investigations, states as follows:
The defendant is charged with:
PL 165.54
Criminal Possession of Stolen
First Degree
(defendant 1: 4 counts)
On or
about November 1, 2011 at about 12:00 P.M., at 1 Hogan tee in the
County and State
of
New York, the defendant knowingly possessed stolen pro erty with a
value in excess of one million dollars with intent to benefit a person other than owner of
the property and to impede recovery by an owner thereof.
The jat al basis
for
this
charge
is as follows:
The defendant knowingly possessed stolen property with a value in excess ofJone million
dollars with intent to benefit a person other
than
an owner
of
the property
a n ~
to impede
recovery by an owner thereof.
The offenses were committed under the following circumstances:
I - I
Deponent states that since approximately 2007, deponent has been signed to a
squad responsible for investigating, among other things, money laundering, s uggling and
importation
of
contraband, cultural property crimes, art f r a u d and crimes volving the
interstate
sale
and transportati9n
of
stolen art. As a Special Agent, deponen has led
or
joined teams
of
agents andffficers in the execution
of
search and arrest warrant seeking the
arrest
of
individuals and the recovery
of
property and evidence associated with illegal
importations and exportations, and with the interstate and foreign transportatio and
sale of
stolen goods.
D e p o n ~ n t
has also seized evidence and property during the xecution of
judicially-authorized warrants.
Deponent states the following, in part, on personal
k n o w l e d g ~
based on
participation in this investigation and experience as a Special Agent with the Dqpartment
of
2D 3NYD77D96
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7/22/2019 Sushma Sareen Complaint
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CRIMINAL COURT
OF
TEE
.Ci:::y OF {..j fi.\1V YORK
.,._
:
COUNTY OF NE\Y/ YORK
...
..
_____ -
~
T H'E
PDOPLE
OF THE
.>T
/- )
. i: l h l f ~ . ) T i VORK
. r_
.
. J . . . . . .. , .. . . ..._
::.
:: ;
.
-against-
FELONY
Sushma Sareen (F 60),.
ADA
Matthew Bog
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7/22/2019 Sushma Sareen Complaint
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CRIMINAL COURT OFTHE CITY OF NE
'\I'JYORK
COUNTY OF
NEW
YORK
P:ge : o t 6
-..
.:::
THE PEOPLE
OF THE
STATE OF
~ J i
R I ~
l
.
-against-
Sushma Sareen (F 60),
FELONY
ADA Matthew Bogaanos
Defendant.
1
(212) 335-9323
conversations about illicit cultural propetty. Informant
1
met with an employtof rt
of
the Past ( informant #2''), known to the Office of the District Attorney, who o ered to sell
a stolen 12th Century Chola bronze statue known
as
the Shiva of Nataraja e $3.5M
Shiva ) for approximately $3.5 million.
Deponent states that on or about
27
September 2011, informant
~ m t
with
Kapoor
at
the
Art of
the Past, at 1242 Madison Avenue, New York, New York. uring this
meeting, informant #1 was equipped with an audio recording device. A cording to
informant
1
and to deponent's review
of
that recording, Kapoor showed, an offered to
sell to, informant 1 at that meeting the
3.5M
Shiva for approximately $3.5
also showed off a 5 million Shiva of Natarja ( the 5M Shiva ). Both Shivas
same room but in opposing wall cabinets. In substance and in part, Kapoor indi
informant 1 that he had been holding both of the items for a few years, and fither stated
that he expected the items to appreciate by 10 to
15
percent per year from their lcurrent fair
market values
of
$3.5 and 5 million.
In
addition to informant
1
s observations, Deponent reviewed sever
containing photographs
of
both Shivas; specifically, Art
of
the Past's March 2 0 ~ catalogue;
a publication from Asia Week New York 2009, indicating that Kapoor was exhi iring a 12th
Century Chola period item that appears to be the $3.5M Shiva; and a publicatio from Asia
Week New York 2010, containing a picture
of
Kapoor with what also appe to be the
3 .5M Shiva.
I
I
Deponent also reviewed emails from the rt of the Past email ace unt. These
emails were obtained pursuant to a search warrant issued by the Supreme Co
of
New
York
City,
on March 16, 2013. Emails dated around April 23, 2011, \howed an ther gallery
owner
in
New York inquiring abou,t and attempting to sell for commission th $5M Shiva
possessed by Art
of
the Past.}\etween July and October
of
2011, yet another
in
vidual was
in email negotiations with Kapoor to purchase the 5M Shiva along with two ther Chola- ,
Period bronze statues: a $2.5 million statue known as the Uma Parameshvari, the $2.5M
Uma ) and a 3.5 million statue known as the Uma-Parvat:i. ( the $3.5M Uma' . Deponent
has learned from Kapoor's business records that were seized pursuant to a
se
ch warrant
and confirmed by Informants
1-2,
that both Shivas and both Umas were Jist d
in
Art
of
the Past catalogues.
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7/22/2019 Sushma Sareen Complaint
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CRIMINAL COURT OF
THE
CGY )F NEW YORK
COUN1Y OF NEW YORK
- ~ - - .
THE PEOPLE Of THE STATE OF NEW
YORK
I
I FELONY
-against-
Page 4 of 6
T..... .:
Sushma Sareen
(F
60),
ADA Matthew Bogaanos
Defendant.
1
(212)
335-9323
Deponent, along with other members
of
DHS-HSI, executed
authorized search warrant on January 5, 2012, at two locations for which
owner: l)'Art of the Past and
2)
units 535, 733, 734, and 736 of Sofia Storage, 16
Street, New York, New York, 10024.
judicially
oor is the
West 83rd
Deponent states that according to Art of the Past's own website, u b ~ s h Kappor
was the owner
of Art
of the Past; that according to U.S. Customs records d financial
records that deponent has reviewed, Subhash Kapoor appears to be the owner o Art of the
Past
in
that he is the signatory for the business; and that according to
New
York State
corporate records, Subhash Kapoor was the principal of Art of the Past.
According to Informant
#2, and confirmed by informant
#3,
known t ~ t h Office
of
the District Attorney and who has been familiar with the business practices of Kapoor
and
Art of
the Past for more than a decade, that defendant Sushma Sareen (Suba h Kapoor's
sister) currently has the power
of attorney for Art of the Past and is running e business
with another individual named Mamta Sager (Subash Kapoor's daughter).
Deponent states that during the execution of the January 5, 2012, se
at Art of the Past, a CD with photographs of both Shivas and both Umas (an 10 others),
the meta-data
of
which indicate that the photos were taken on February 26, 2008. Also
seized pursuant to that warrant were a series of shipping documents for thos 14 statues
(both Shivas and both
Um as
and
10
others) showing how each of the statues as illegally
e x p o ~ e d
from India to Hong Kong by the subterfuge of including the antiq statues
in
otherwise legal shipments of new Indian artistic handicrafts.
Also recovered during this search were letters addressed
to
Aaron
Fr
eman from
Subash Kapoor. The first l ~ t t r was dated November 3, 2011, and instructed Aar n Freeman
to give back 4 items to Selina (.Mohamad] Bronze Dancers, which are in the 4 closets.
In
another letter to Freeman from Kapoor dated November
6,
2011, it reads
4
cers bronze
in 4 closets= 2 pairs nataraj conserts
[sic].
The deponent has learned from I ottnant
#2
that these 4 bronzes are the two Shivas and two Umas that are the subject of thi complaint.
Deponent is further informed that Aaron Freeman, Subash Kapoor, Sushma areen, and
Selina Mohamed
all
knew
that the items were stolen. Freeman had the items mo ed to Selina
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CRIMlNi
\L COURT OF
THE CITY
OF NEW
YORK
COUNTY OF
NEW
YORK
THE
PEOPLE
OF THE STATE
OF
NEW YORK
-against-
FELONY
Sushma Sareen
(F
60),
ADA Matthew
Bog
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7/22/2019 Sushma Sareen Complaint
6/6
CRIMINJ\L COURT
OF THE
CITY OF
NEW
YORK
COUNTY OF NEW YORK
THE
PEOPLE OF THE
STATE
OF
NEW YORK
-against-
FELONY
Sushma Sareen
F
60),
ADA Matthew
Bog