Buyers conned by fake Hirst art

Counterfeit Damien Hirst artworks were used to con dozens of art buyers out of £314,000, prosecutors have said. Three men have been charged in New York with fraud and theft after allegedly carrying out the international scam using “knock-off” pieces claiming to be made by the British artist.

Vincent Lopreto, 52, Marco Saverino, 34, and Paul Motta, 50, are accused of conning buyers from countries including the UK, US, Italy, Taiwan and South Korea.

Manhattan district attorney Cyrus Vance jnr said: “The defendants are charged with deceiving a multitude of buyers into purchasing counterfeit art that was falsely passed off as genuine.” 0 One of the fake Hirsts involved in the fraud