"At the Ontario Supreme Court in rural Barrie, Ontario, Cowan, who represented himself at trial after being accused of supplying hundreds of forgeries of Canada's "Picasso of the North", was found guilty on all four counts of fraud. He was found guilty of uttering forged documents and defrauding the public, along with two customers, of property valued at more than C$5,000 ($3,500)."
"While the Crown accused Cowan of sourcing forgeries that flooded the art market, his defence was that establishing provenance was difficult due to Morrisseau's substance abuse issues and lack of consistent standards for signatures. He also claimed that many of the works came from his uncle Howard Alexander, a claim that witnesses said had no supporting evidence. His sentencing is scheduled for February 2026, but he has not ruled out appealing the verdict."
Jeff Cowan was convicted on four counts of fraud for supplying hundreds of forged Norval Morrisseau works and found guilty of uttering forged documents and defrauding the public and two customers of property valued at more than C$5,000. Since Morrisseau's 2007 death, demand and prices for his work rose sharply, and the forgery and trafficking of knock-offs have been estimated at more than C$100 million. Earlier prosecutions resulted in guilty pleas and prison sentences for others, and investigations uncovered three large forgery rings operating in Ontario. Sentencing for Cowan is scheduled for February 2026 and an appeal remains possible.
Read at The Art Newspaper - International art news and events
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