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Project

Art laundering: is it not time to develop a comprehensive enforcement model? The need for tailored criminalization, compliance and enforcement of art laundering activities

Art destruction, theft and looting are not new phenomena. Yet, the ferocity that marked attacks against cultural heritage in the recent past – one may think of events in the Middle East – were met with worldwide indignation and sorrow. Art objects that are not destroyed, are looted, smuggled abroad, disguised as apparently legal goods and sold on the official art market, whose steady demand acts as a driving force behind these offences. The transition from the illegal to the legal sphere is made possible by art laundering operations that conceal the criminal origin of illicitly sourced art and confer such objects a mask of legitimacy.These operations have been the object of extensive study outside the legal field, while a comprehensive legal analysis has not yet been accomplished. This project aims at contributing to fill this gap by examining what integrated approach – encompassing preventive rules, administrative action, substantive criminal law provisions and criminal procedural measures – is best suited for effectively tackling art laundering. The goal of this research is to design an enforcement model able to counter a phenomenon that deeply wounds the cultural heritage of places and communities.
Date:1 Oct 2020 →  30 Sep 2021
Keywords:art laundering, money laundering, art market regulation and due diligence, crossborder criminal justice cooperation, transnational crime
Disciplines:Criminal law, International law, Comparative law, Public policy