Man Charged for Allegedly Damaging $26 Million Picasso Painting
Picasso Painting Man Charged with $26 Million Crime ... Over Bust of a Woman
Forget "Scent of a Woman" ... one guy allegedly had to get his hands on Picasso's pricey Bust of a Woman, for which he was arrested and has now been charged. Hoo-ah!
20-year-old Shakeel Ryan Massey was arrested this weekend for damaging the 1944 oil painting on display at the Tate Modern gallery in London ... valued at $26 million. It depicts French photog Dora Maar -- PP's old muse -- except all cube-y and abstract-like.
According to the BBC, the guy allegedly "attacked" the painting and left it ripped somehow. A Tate spokesman says the artwork is being assessed by their conservation team, and the gallery remains open. In other words, the painting -- a Picasso original -- is in surgery.
As for this young fella, he's reportedly been charged with criminal damage and appeared in court this week ... only to be told he'd be held in custody until a pre-trial hearing at the end of January. He's apparently already indicated he plans to fight the charge.
The painting is of other noteworthy value besides being done by the famous painter -- it's said to have been created in Paris during the final months of Nazi occupation.
Our question ... what's security like at this joint, and how easy is it to jump a rope and get a hold of a painting worth this much cash??? Easy enough, allegedly.
