Saanich police are trying to reunite four paintings with either their owners or the artists who created them as they continue their investigation into the owner of Winchester Galleries in Oak Bay.
On Tuesday, Saanich police posted photos on Twitter of the four artworks, asking that anyone with information contact them at [email protected].
In April, Saanich police seized more than 1,000 pieces of art valued in the “tens of millions of dollars” from storage lockers after a months-long probe into the art dealer.
The works taken under police warrants included an Emily Carr painting, several pieces by celebrated Canadian artists David Blackwood and Joseph Plaskett, and many others of local, national and international renown.
In April, Saanich police said investigators were preparing a report for Crown counsel recommending criminal charges for multiple counts of fraud and false pretense, but no charges have been laid so far.
The dealer was taking art from people with the intention of consigning or appraising it, then ceasing all contact, “all the while selling the art without reimbursing the owners or artists,” Const. Markus Anastasiades said at the time.
The dealer acquired Winchester Galleries — long considered a prestigious gallery highlighting Canadian artists — three years ago from long-time owners Gunter Heinrich and Anthony Sam.
Heinrich subsequently also sold the gallery property at 2260 Oak Bay Ave., a restored and remodelled home that contains 5,000 square feet of gallery space on three floors.
The property has changed ownership twice since then and is listed for lease, according to lease administrator Dave Bornhold, who said the new Winchester Galleries owner moved out last July when his lease expired.
The stash of artwork found in storage lockers in Saanich, Oak Bay and Langford represented the highest value of property seized by the department in the past 30 years.
