Mass. plaintiff awarded $3.1M in art heist lawsuit

[August 25, 2011]  BARNSTABLE, Mass. (AP) -- A Massachusetts jury has found in favor of the plaintiff in a lawsuit filed in connection with a 1978 art heist.

The Barnstable Superior Court jury awarded plaintiff Michael Bakwin more than $3.1 million in damages on Tuesday.

The artwork was stolen from Bakwin's Stockbridge home in 1978. It included a piece by French impressionist Paul Cezanne.

In 2007, Bakwin sued retired attorney Robert Mardirosian. The seven paintings were stolen by one of Mardirosian's former clients. Mardirosian was convicted in 2008 of harboring and attempting to sell the artwork and sentenced to seven years in prison.

The Cape Cod Times (http://bit.ly/qc7FM2) reports that the trial centered on whether Mardirosian transferred assets to family members in an attempt to appear insolvent.

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Information from: Cape Cod Times, http://www.capecodonline.com/

[Associated Press]

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