Three German men have been found guilty of the million-dollar art theft of works by painter Georg Baselitz, a Munich Court decided on Monday.
A 40-year-old from Dusseldorf and a 52-year-old from Leverkusen were both sentenced to three years imprisonment, while a 26-year-old received a probationary sentence of two years.
The decision is not yet final and can be appealed.
The 40-year-old stole the works of art between June 2015 and March 2016 from a warehouse in Bavaria before the 52-year-old – who was aided by his 26-year-old son – then attempted to sell the works on the art market, the Munich district court said.
The court found the men guilty of commercial stealing, while the son was convicted of aiding and abetting the theft.
The prosecution had previously demanded prison sentences between four and four-and-a-half years for all three men, but the court took the confessions that the three defendants filed at the beginning of the trial into consideration.
The stolen works have an estimated value of 2.2 million dollars, the court said.
In addition to works by Baselitz, a sculpture by the sculptor Tony Cragg and a picture by Christa Dichgans were also involved.
Painter and sculptor Georg Baselitz is a highly successful contemporary artist, receiving international recognition for his upside down pictures. (dpa/NAN)