~ 1 ~

THE THIRTY-EIGHTH ANNUAL IOWA HIGH SCHOOL

MOCK TRIAL TOURNAMENT 2020

STATE OF IOWA

V.

TAYLOR GATES

A program of

The Iowa State Bar Association Center for Law & Civic Education

In cooperation with the Young Lawyer’s Division

Of The Iowa State Bar Association

With generous financial support from The Iowa State Bar Foundation

~ 2 ~

IOWA HIGH SCHOOL MOCK TRIAL TOURNAMENT

2020

STATE OF IOWA

V.

TAYLOR GATES

Original Case Materials Developed for

Idaho Law Foundation/Idaho Mock Trial Competition © 2016

Case Adapted for Iowa High School Competition Use By:

The Iowa State Bar Association Center for Law & Civic Education

625 East Court Avenue Des Moines, Iowa 50309

Many thanks to the Idaho Law Foundation and its Law-Related Education Committee Mock Trial

Program for permitting use and adaptation of the original case material and especially to Carey Shoufler, Idaho Bar Foundation Law Related Education Director.

In Memory of Michael Fica, Dear Friend and Colleague

Whose commitment to justice, passion for mock trial and tireless commitment to students will never pass away.

Mike was full of joy and bigger than life – These earthly bonds could not hold his spirit.

~ 3 ~

CASE MATERIALS

Table of Contents THE PROBLEM Background ........................................................................................... 4 Stipulations ........................................................................................... 5 Trial Information .................................................................................. 6 IOWA CODE ……………………………………………………………....7 JURY INSTRUCTIONS ............................................................................. 9 WITNESS STATEMENTS For the Prosecution Brooke Poole ...................................................................................... 16 Claude/ia Hendricks............................................................................ 25 Lou Howe ........................................................................................... 34 For the Defense Taylor Gates ........................................................................................ 40 Sal Amore ........................................................................................... 48 Riley Chase ......................................................................................... 55 EXHIBITS ................................................................................................... 62 Exhibit No. Exhibit Description

1 Newspaper Article 3/4/1998 2 Newspaper Article 3/3/2013 3 List of Stolen Artwork with Valuation 4 Letter from Columbia University to Riley Chase 5 Curriculum Vitae – Sal Amore 6 Incident Report 7 Storage Unit Agreement 8 Plea Agreement

~ 4 ~

Case Background In the early morning hours of Tuesday, March 3, 1998, two people disguised as police officers stole six prize pieces from the exhibit of the famous artist known as Ron that had just opened the week before. For the better part of the next 20 years the theft had been investigated, tips and leads chased, with no suspects charged and no art recovered. But then, in late November 2018, Brooke Poole, an investigative reporter with the Des Moines Tribune, who had grown up in Grinnell and followed the case since s/he was a cub reporter with the Grinnell Herald Register, was contacted by her/his childhood friend Taylor Gates. Taylor told Brooke s/he had uncovered something interesting and asked Brooke to get in touch next time s/he was in town. About the Artist Known as Ron Ron was a real artist, though not from Iowa. He frequented college campuses in the South during the late 1970’s and 1980’s producing fine, affordable artwork for the college community. Ron was no doubt very skilled as an artist and was capable of producing brilliant paintings. However, most of his sales came in the quick and artful production of thematic pieces done in public to the blare of reggae music. Much like other artists who have/had an artistic “calling card” (ala M.C. Escher’s endless loops or Thomas Kincaid, painter of light), Ron’s works were intricately designed to depict different scenes depending on how one held or displayed the art. For example, a beautiful beach scene could easily become a waterfall. Ron’s arrival on campus was a sure herald of Spring. No one really knew where he went during the winter months – perhaps to farther flung campuses; or perhaps to hone his artistic creations out of the adoring glare of students; perhaps even to a small farm in Iowa? The Artist Known as Ron was a true National Treasure. Disclaimer This is a work of fiction. The names, characters, businesses, organization, places, events, and incidents herein are the product of the author’s warped imagination.

~ 5 ~

STIPULATIONS

1. All exhibits included in the case materials are authentic and accurate representations of the items they depict, and the proper chain of custody with regard to the exhibits has been maintained. All parties must still use the proper procedures for admitting exhibits into evidence, and all exhibits are subject to objection other than as to their authenticity.

2. Witness statements were given under oath and are assumed to be signed. Any

signatures and signature representations on documents, including exhibits, are authentic. No challenges based on the authenticity of signed documents will be entertained.

3. The dates of witness statements are not relevant and are not included. No challenges based on the dates of the witness statements will be entertained. All statements were taken after the alleged incidents by before trial.

4. The jurisdiction and venue are proper.

5. All parties have agreed to the jury instructions.

6. Each witness may be portrayed by a student of either gender. Any instances where a witness is referred to as only “him” or “her” or only “he” of “she” is inadvertent.

7. It is anticipated that trial time will not permit the use of all the exhibits provided in these materials. Each party should select and use only those exhibits that best support and illustrate that party’s theory of the case.

8. The statute of limitations for the original art theft has passed. (Generally, in Iowa, the statute of limitations for felonies and “aggravated and serious” misdemeanors is three years. Simple misdemeanors have a limitation of one year.)

9. There is a monetary reward of $100,000 for the return of the stolen paintings.

~ 6 ~

IN THE IOWA DISTRICT COURT FOR POWESHIEK COUNTY STATE OF IOWA, ) ) Plaintiff, ) CASE NO. MT-2020- 121819 ) Vs. ) ) TRIAL INFORMATION TAYLOR GATES, ) ) Defendant. ) ) ______________________________) COMES NOW the Poweshiek County Attorney’s Office and, in the name and by the authority of the State of Iowa, accuses the Defendant of the crime of the following: THEFT IN THE FIRST DEGREE (Property Exceeding $10,000) in violation of Iowa Code Chapter 714, a Class C felony, as follows: COUNT I That the defendant, Taylor Gates, on or between October 17, 2018 and January 5, 2019 did wrongfully take, obtain, or withhold property with the intent to deprive the owner of the property, and/or to appropriate the property to her/himself or a third person, to wit: the defendant retained, concealed, obtained control over, or possessed two (2) paintings of the Artist Know as Ron which the defendant knew had been stolen from, or should have reasonable believed had been stolen from, The Boyd Museum of Art in Grinnell, Iowa, which property had a value in excess of $10,000 with the intent to deprive the owner of the property and/or to appropriate the property to her/himself or a third person, while within the County of Poweshiek, State of Iowa, in violation of Iowa Code Chapter 714. All of which is contrary to the form of the statute in such cases made and provided, against the peace and dignity of the State of Iowa. DATED this 11th day of March 2019

~ 7 ~

IOWA CODE

CHAPTER 714

THEFT, FRAUD AND RELATED OFFENSES 714.1 Theft defined. A person commits theft when the person does any of the following: 1. Takes possession or control of the property of another, or property in the possession of another, with the intent to deprive the other thereof. 2. Misappropriates property which the person has in trust, or property of another which the person has in the person’s possession or control, whether such possession or control is lawful or unlawful, by using or disposing of it in a manner which is inconsistent with or a denial of the trust or of the owner’s rights in such property, or conceals found property, or appropriates such property to the person’s own use, when the owner of such property is known to the person. 4. Exercises control over stolen property, knowing such property to have been stolen, or having reasonable cause to believe that such property has been stolen, unless the person’s purpose is to promptly restore it to the owner or to deliver it to an appropriate public officer. The fact that the person is found in possession of property which has been stolen from two or more persons on separate occasions, or that the person is a dealer or other person familiar with the value of such property and has acquired it for a consideration which is far below its reasonable value, shall be evidence from which the court or jury may infer that the person knew or believed that the property had been stolen.

714.2 Degrees of theft.

1. The theft of property exceeding ten thousand dollars in value, or the theft of property from the person of another, or from a building which has been destroyed or left unoccupied because of physical disaster, riot, bombing, or the proximity of battle, or the theft of property which has been removed from a building because of a physical disaster, riot, bombing, or the proximity of battle, is theft in the first degree. Theft in the first degree is a class “C” felony.

2. The theft of property exceeding one thousand five hundred dollars but not exceeding ten

thousand dollars in value or theft of a motor vehicle as defined in chapter 321 not exceeding ten thousand dollars in value, is theft in the second degree. Theft in the second degree is a class “D” felony. However, for purposes of this subsection, “motor vehicle” does not include a motorized bicycle as defined in section 321.1, subsection 40, paragraph “b”.

~ 8 ~

3. The theft of property exceeding seven hundred fifty dollars but not exceeding one thousand five hundred dollars in value, or the theft of any property not exceeding five hundred dollars in value by one who has before been twice convicted of theft, is theft in the third degree. Theft in the third degree is an aggravated misdemeanor.

4. The theft of property exceeding three hundred dollars in value but not exceeding seven

hundred fifty dollars in value is theft in the fourth degree. Theft in the fourth degree is a serious misdemeanor.

5. The theft of property not exceeding three hundred dollars in value is theft in the fifth degree.

Theft in the fifth degree is a simple misdemeanor.

714.3 Value.

1. The value of property is its highest value by any reasonable standard at the time that it is stolen. Reasonable standard includes but is not limited to market value within the community, actual value, or replacement value.

2. If money or property is stolen from the same person or location by two or more acts, or from different persons by two or more acts which occur in approximately the same location or time period, or from different locations by two or more acts within a thirty-day period, so that the thefts are attributable to a single scheme, plan, or conspiracy, these acts may be considered a single theft and the value may be the total value of all the property stolen.

714.4 Claim of right. No person who takes, obtains, disposes of, or otherwise uses or acquires property, is guilty

of theft by reason of such act if the person reasonably believes that the person has a right, privilege or license to do so, or if the person does in fact have such right, privilege or license.

~ 9 ~

JURY INSTRUCTIONS Before the commencement of the trial and at its conclusion, the judge will instruct the jury how to apply the law to the evidence. Hypothetically, if the judge in your mock trial case were to provide instructions to the jury, they would look something like these. Instruction No. 1 Your duties are to determine the facts, to apply the law set forth in my instructions to those facts, and in this way to decide the case. In so doing, you must follow my instructions regardless of your own opinion of what the law is or should be, or what either side may state the law to be. You must consider them as a whole, not picking out one and disregarding others. The order in which the instructions are given has no significance as to their relative importance. The law requires that your decision be made solely upon the evidence before you. Neither sympathy nor prejudice should influence your deliberations. Faithful performance by you of these duties is vital to the administration of justice. Instruction No. 2 As members of the jury, it is your duty to decide what the facts are and to apply those facts to the law that I have given you. You are to decide the facts from all the evidence presented in the case. The evidence from which you are to find the facts consists of the following:

1. The sworn testimony of the witnesses;

2. Documents and any other items received as exhibits;

3. Any facts that are stipulated – that is, formally agreed to by the parties.

The following are not evidence:

1. Arguments and statements by lawyers. The lawyers are not witnesses. What they say in their opening statements, closing arguments and at other times are included to help you interpret the evidence, but is not evidence. If the facts as you remember them differ from the way the lawyers have stated them, follow your memory;

2. Any testimony that has been excluded, stricken, or which you have been instructed to

disregard;

~ 10 ~

3. Anything you may have seen or heard about this case when court was not in session.

Instruction No. 3 The production of evidence in court is governed by rules of law. At times during the trial, an objection was made to a question asked a witness, or to a witness’ answer, or to an exhibit. This simply means that I was being asked to decide a particular rule of law. Arguments on the admissibility of evidence are designed to aid the Court and are not to be considered by you nor affect your deliberations. If I sustained an objection to a question or to an exhibit, the witness could not answer the question or the exhibit could not be considered. Do not attempt to guess what the answer might have been or what the exhibit might have shown. Similarly, if I tell you not to consider a particular statement or exhibit you should put it out of your mind, and not refer to it or rely on it in your later deliberations. Instruction No. 4 Some of you have probably heard the terms “circumstantial evidence,” “direct evidence” and/or “hearsay evidence.” Do not be concerned with those terms. You are to consider all the evidence admitted in this trial. However, the law does not require you to believe all the evidence. As the sole judges of the facts, you must determine what evidence you believe and what weight you attach to it. There is no magical formula by which one may evaluate testimony. You bring with you to this courtroom all of the experiences and background of your lives. In your everyday affairs you determine for yourselves whom you believe, what you believe, and how much weight you attach to what you are told. The same considerations that you use in your everyday dealings in making these decisions are the considerations which you should apply in your deliberations. In deciding what you believe, do not make your decisions simply because more witnesses may have testified one way than the other. Your role is to think about the testimony of each witness heard and decide how much you believe of what the witness had to say. Instruction No. 5 A witness who has special knowledge in a particular matter may give an opinion on that matter. In determining the weight to be given such opinion, you should consider the qualifications and credibility of the witness and the reason given for the opinion. You are not bound by such opinion. Give it the weight, if any, to which you deem it entitled.

~ 11 ~

Instruction No. 6 Do not concern yourself with the subject of penalty or punishment. That subject must not in any way affect your verdict. If you find the defendant guilty, it will be my duty to determine the appropriate penalty or punishment. Instruction No. 7 A defendant in a criminal action is presumed to be innocent. This presumption places upon the state the burden of proving the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Thus, a defendant, although accused, begins the trial with a clean slate with no evidence against the defendant. If, after considering all of the evidence and my instructions on the law, you have a reasonable doubt as to the defendant’ guilt, you must return a verdict of not guilty. Reasonable doubt is defined as follows: It is not mere possible doubt, because everything relating to human affairs, and depending on moral evidence, is open to some possible or imaginary doubt. It is the state of the case which, after the entire comparison and consideration of all of the evidence, leaves the minds of the jurors in the that condition that they cannot say they feel an abiding conviction, to a moral certainty, of the truth of the charge. Instruction No. 8 This criminal case has been brought by the State of Iowa. The defendant, Taylor Gates, is charged by the State of Iowa with the crime of Theft in the First Degree. The charge against the defendant is set forth in the Indictment. The Indictment is simply a description of the charge; it is not evidence. Instruction No. 9 A person steals property and commits theft when, with the intent to deprive another of property or appropriate the same to the person or a third party, such person wrongfully takes, obtains, or withholds such property from an owner thereof. Instruction No. 10 In order for the Defendant to be found guilty of Theft in the First Degree, the State must prove each of the following:

1. Between the dates of October 17, 2018 and January 5, 2019

2. In the State of Iowa

~ 12 ~

3. The defendant, Taylor Gates, knowingly retained, concealed, obtained control over, or

possessed artwork by the artist know as Ron valued at over $10,000

4. Either knowing the property was stolen by another or under such circumstances as would reasonable induce the defendant to believe the property was stolen

5. Such property in fact stolen and

6. Any of the following occurred:

a. The defendant had the intent to deprive the owner permanently of the use or benefit of the property, or

b. The defendant knowingly used, concealed or abandoned the property in such manner as to deprive the owner permanently of the use of benefits of the property, or

c. The defendant used, concealed, or abandoned property knowing that such use, concealment, or abandonment would have probably deprived the owner permanently of the use or benefit of the property.

If any of the above has not been proven beyond a reasonable doubt, then you must find the defendant not guilty. If each of the above has been proven beyond a reasonable doubt, you must find the defendant guilty. The law makes no distinction between a person who directly participates in the acts constituting a crime and a person who, either before or during its commission, intentionally aids, assists, facilitates, promotes, encourages, counsels, solicits, invites, helps or hires another to commit a crime with intent to promote or assist in its commission. Both can be found guilty of the crime. Mere presence at, acquiescence in, or silent consent to, the planning or commission of a crime, is not, in the absence of a duty to act, sufficient to make one an accomplice. Instruction No. 11 Property is stolen when a person wrongfully takes, obtains, or withholds it from the owner with the intent to deprive the owner of the property or to appropriate it to any other person other than the owner.

~ 13 ~

Instruction No. 12 The phrase “intent to deprive” means:

1. The intent to withhold property or cause it to be withheld from an owner permanently or for so extended a period or under such circumstances that the major portion of its economic value or benefit is lost to such owner; or

2. The intent to dispose of the property in such a manner or under such circumstances as

to render it unlikely that an owner will recover such property,

The phrase “intent to appropriate” means:

1. The intent to exercise control over property, or to aid someone other than the owner to exercise control over it, permanently or for so extended a period of time or under such circumstances as to acquire the major portion of its economic value or benefit; or

2. The intent to dispose of the property for the benefit of oneself or someone other than

the owner.

To “obtain” property means to bring about a transfer of an interest in or the possession of the property. “Property” means anything of value. An “owner” of property is any person who has a right to possession of such property superior to that of the defendant. “Person” means an individual, corporation, association, public or private corporation, city or other municipality, county, state agency or the State of Iowa. The term “value” as used in these instructions means the market value of the property at the time and place of the alleged crime, or if the market value cannot be satisfactorily ascertained, the cost of replacement of the property within a reasonable time after the alleged crime. Instruction No. 13 It is alleged that the crime charged was committed between certain dates. If you find the crime was committed, the proof need not show that it was committed on a precise date.

~ 14 ~

Instruction No. 14 Evidence has been introduced for the purpose of showing the defendant committed crimes, wrongs, or acts other than for which the defendant is on trial. Such evidence, if believed, is not to be considered by you to prove the defendant’s character or that the defendant has a disposition to commit crimes. Such evidence may be considered by you only for the limited purpose of proving the defendant’s motive, opportunity, intent, preparation, plan, knowledge, identity, or absence of mistake or accident.

~ 15 ~

WITNESS STATEMENTS

~ 16 ~

STATEMENT OF BROOKE POOLE My name is Brooke Poole. I’m 45 years old. I grew up in Grinnell, Iowa and graduated 1

from Grinnell High School in 1991. I went to Southern Iowa University and earned a 2

degree in Mass Communications in 1995. During my college years, it became clear to 3

me that I was meant to be an investigative journalist. All through college I worked at 4

the Jabberwocky, the SIU student newspaper. I also worked at the college cable TV 5

station (Cable 99) where I specialized in uncovering the stories behind the story – the 6

gritty, in-depth reporting that shows the true motivation for an action 7

In fact, during my senior year, when I was editor of the paper, the Jabberwocky 8

won what is the student equivalent of a Pulitzer Prize for some investigative work we 9

did on unfair working conditions for adjunct faculty. It really was a shame that some of 10

those faculty members ended up getting fired for talking to me and other reporters, but 11

it really helped me learn that sometimes you have to make sacrifices to get a story. Plus, 12

it was that work that earned my acceptance to the University of Missouri School of 13

Journalism, arguably among the finest J-Schools in the nation. I received my M.S. in 14

Journalism. Besides the fact that I still have a lot of debt from my education, I still 15

believe that going to graduate school was the best thing I ever did. It gave me the right 16

foundation for my career and set me up for success. 17

Since graduating, I have spent 20 years working as a reporter. In fact, I would say 18

that trying to be a good reporter is how I got involved with this mess. That and having 19

grown up next door to Taylor Gates. 20

I have known Taylor Gates most of my life, going all the way back to Bailey Park 21

Elementary School. We were neighbors when we were kids and were good friends 22

through middle school but pretty much took different paths in high school – Taylor was 23

really into status and wanted to hang out with all of the rich kids and I was really into 24

~ 17 ~

my activities, like yearbook and the school newspaper. You know how that stuff goes. 25

One day you look back and realize you’ve left your childhood behind. 26

I mean, Taylor and I would run into each other on occasion when I was working 27

at the Grinnell Herald Register and it was always cordial enough, but it’s not like we 28

were going to each other’s houses for family barbeques. We really didn’t run in the 29

same circles. That’s why it was a little odd when Taylor called me right before 30

Thanksgiving in 2018, but not so weird that it was out of the realm of possibility. 31

Besides, I’m a reporter at heart, so it’s really my life work to chase a story at any cost. 32

Let me back up a little bit and fill in some of the missing puzzle pieces. One of 33

my first jobs after graduate school was at the Grinnell Herald Register. I was technically 34

a beat reporter, assigned to cover metro news, but in a place like Grinnell, pretty much 35

anything could be metro news. You just do whatever you need to do to get the paper to 36

print. And any edition that include a byline of mine was a personal victory. One day 37

you might be covering an accident on the I-80 and the next you might need to cover a 38

local soccer game (Go Scipio FC!). You just go where the stories take you. And on 39

March 3, 1998, that’s how I ended up at the Boyd Museum of Art in Grinnell, covering a 40

robbery and it’s been an obsession with me ever since. 41

When you’re a reporter and the phone rings in the early morning hours, you can 42

pretty much rest assured that it’s going to be big. And that night in March, it was. My 43

editor at the time had gotten a call from the museum director, Anjie Shutts, that 44

something big had happened and that paper needed to send someone over to cover it. I 45

know it may seem odd that someone who had been the victim of such a massive 46

robbery would think to notify the press, but my editor and Shutts ran in the same 47

circles, and I think she figured it would be best to have as many people investigating 48

this as possible. 49

I’m sure Claude/ia Hendricks feels differently. S/he’s always treated the press in 50

general and me in particular like a nuisance, getting in the way of his/her case-solving 51

~ 18 ~

glory. Suffice it to say, I was the one who cracked this case wide open, not Claude/ia 52

Hendricks. I’m sure that’s part of the reason Hendricks has been so keen to implicate 53

me in this. 54

Anyway, barely awake, filling myself as quickly as possible with coffee as leaded 55

as I could find, I show up at the Boyd Museum of Art in Grinnell to find out that two 56

people dressed as police officers had shown up in the middle of the night and pulled off 57

what was certainly the biggest art heist in Iowa’s history, especially given the Artist 58

Known as Ron’s prominence as an Iowa artist. And my small-town paper was the one 59

that got the scoop. Within a day, my account of the RonArt Heist was picked up by 60

every major paper in the country. It was a great story. It was also my ticket out of 61

Smallville. 62

I’m sure most people know the story by now, but the robbers convinced the 63

security guard, Lou Howe, that they had heard reports of a disturbance in the area and 64

were sent to check it out, Look, Lou is not the sharpest tool in the shed. If I’m being 65

honest, the robbers could have said that they were aliens come to take Lou back to 66

his/her home planet and Lou probably would have said, “OK. Come on in.” Lou Howe 67

had spent the night duct taped to a chair while the robbers took their sweet time 68

removing the precise paintings they came to steal. From the beginning, it was clear that 69

this wasn’t just some smash-and-grab job. Our two thieves knew exactly what they 70

wanted. Interestingly, they did not steal the most famous paintings in the exhibit, nor 71

the most valuable. They really must have had a plan. I’ve never figured out what or 72

why. 73

Of course, it took about a week before I could get Howe to talk to me. Lou 74

insisted at the time that s/he had nothing to do with the robbery and I believed him/her. 75

S/he was clearly shaken up by the incident and continued to express regret that s/he 76

was fooled into letting two people commit such a heinous act. At the time, I just didn’t 77

think Lou was the kind of person who had it in him/her to do something this nefarious. 78

~ 19 ~

If Lou was in any way involved, it would have been more as a lackey. I can assure you, 79

mastermind has never been a term applied to Lou Howe. Besides, the police never 80

publicly referred to Howe as a suspect. 81

I spent close to three years chasing down leads on the RonArt Heist and nothing 82

ever came of it. No one was identified as a suspect. I was really not able to uncover any 83

trail of evidence. Certainly, whoever had stolen the paintings were not trying to sell 84

them on the black market. Everything I chased turned out to be a dead end. I spoke 85

with art forgers, black market experts, even the FBI about the murky underworld of art 86

fraud, art theft and what motivates collectors to own stolen paintings. I’ve kept in 87

contact with many of these sources over the years. In fact, a couple of them were 88

involved in a rather high-profile case just last year dealing with art forgery. I covered 89

that story for the paper and have started shopping a book deal based on the art 90

underworld that would encompass both that incident and this historic robbery. I even 91

had a lengthy conversation with the famous documentary film maker Allyn Funt about 92

an in-depth investigative piece for Netflix. The only good thing was that it catapulted 93

my career. I was able to leverage my good reporting into a job with the Des Moines 94

Tribune. I know, I know, it’s not like the New York Times came knocking, but at least I 95

got to move to a place with more than one Starbucks, to a job with better pay, and to a 96

market with more opportunities. 97

So I moved to Des Moines and mostly put the RonArt Heist behind me, settling 98

into my life as a reporter for the Des Moines Tribune. Every once in a while, usually 99

whenever there was a high profile art heist elsewhere, I would do a little digging and 100

publish a story or an update on Iowa’s own unsolved art heist, but for the most part, I 101

really began to believe that the RonArt paintings were lost to us forever. Then, on 102

August 13, 2005, I got this mysterious phone call. As a reporter it’s incumbent upon me 103

not to reveal my sources, but I will say that the person I spoke with was a 104

knowledgeable rogue antique dealer who claimed to have some information about the 105

~ 20 ~

heist and offered to show me one of the RonArt works. And down the rabbit hole I 106

went again, just like Alice to the tea party. 107

Nothing really came of the lead – you can read all about it in the story I wrote – 108

but I am still pretty certain that what I saw that day in August 2005 was one of the 109

missing RonArt paintings. What did come of that incident is that it put me further on 110

the wrong side of Claude/ia Hendricks. My attempts to verify the lead without 111

contacting him/her made Hendricks furious. At the time s/he referred to me as someone 112

who was, at best, only in it to get the reward money and, at worst, an accomplice who 113

was interfering with the investigation. To this day, Hendricks still dismisses my 2005 114

sighting as a fraud but I’m not quite as certain as the self-assured Agent Hendricks. I 115

still believe that I caught a glimpse of Ron’s ”Stir It Up” painting. The situation 116

definitely hurt my reputation as a crack reporter for a while, but we live in a world 117

where you’re only the focus of attention until the next big story comes along. And let’s 118

face it; none of us has that long of an attention span, which for once worked for my 119

benefit. I do suppose that this misstep could have been why I was willing to go along 120

with Taylor Gates on yet another lead when s/he contacted me. 121

As I mentioned earlier, I was a little surprised when Taylor got in touch with me. 122

The voicemail s/he left seemed so cloak and dagger. Taylor said mysteriously, “I have 123

some items you’ll be interested in. I can’t tell you anything else over the phone. Call 124

me.” I was curious so I returned the call. In that first conversation Taylor seemed to 125

have calmed down and was pretty casual. Taylor told me that s/he had followed my 126

stories on the RonArt Heist and said that s/he’d uncovered something interesting. 127

Taylor wouldn’t say what on the phone but said that we should meet next time I was in 128

town. Taylor didn’t offer a lot of details at the time and frankly I didn’t press because I 129

did not want to get my hopes up again that I ‘d uncover something about the RonArt 130

Heist that would lead to a great story only to find out I’d been suckered once again. 131

Fool me once, blah, blah, blah. You know the drill. 132

~ 21 ~

But it turns out that Taylor did have something big. Something huge. Could it be 133

that I would finally get my Pulitzer? That was really all that was going through my 134

mind when I met with Elliot on December 28, 2018 and s/he took me to a storage facility 135

in Montezuma. Elliot said s/he had discovered the storage unit address and a key in a 136

drawer in her/his father’s desk after his/her father died in October. Taylor said I was 137

welcome to whatever I wanted with what I found in the unit, but there was one 138

condition: I could not under any circumstances tie it back to the Gates family. Of course, 139

I said that I would not reveal my source. Taylor said, “My dad and I are much more 140

than a ‘source.’ I need to deal with this, but I have to keep my family’s name out of it.” I 141

agreed, and Taylor opened the door. There they were; what looked like four of the six 142

missing RonArt paintings in your basic self-serve storage unit. It couldn’t possibly be 143

that they had been there all along, could it? Taylor explained that s/he discovered the 144

paintings hidden behind a false wall of the unit. S/he didn’t say if s/he discovered 145

anything else of significance. Makes you wonder what other skeletons maybe hidden in 146

the Gates closet, doesn’t it? 147

And that’s probably where things started to go south. In spite of my dislike for 148

Claude/is Hendricks, I told Taylor that we should contact her/him to get involved with 149

this case but I let Taylor talk me out of it. S/he said, “I know that you want a story. How 150

about a little cash, too?” I asked Taylor is s/he wanted me to return the paintings to the 151

Boyd Museum for the reward money. S/he said, “that would be one way to get it.” I 152

thought that was a strange comment, but I was so excited by the paintings that I let it 153

pass. Taylor insisted that it would be better to get the paintings authenticated before we 154

did anything else and claimed that s/he really wanted to keep the Gates name out of the 155

press with regard to the paintings. And since I had been burned before, I decided that it 156

couldn’t hurt to go the extra step. Of course, it also wouldn’t hurt that I would get the 157

scoop when this story broke, but that was just a side benefit. 158

~ 22 ~

So, I contacted Riley Chase who I had gotten to know during my research for this 159

case. I was sure that Riley would be discreet. Boy was I wrong on so many fronts. On 160

the way to Riley’s gallery, I couldn’t stop thinking about what a coup this was, and 161

about my Pulitzer Prize. I was even thinking about my acceptance speech. But the more 162

I thought about it, the less sure I was. The story up to this point wasn’t very exciting – 163

“Paintings found in Shed: Returned to Museum” was not a great headline. So, I thought 164

up my own idea. What if I could juice it up a little bit? What if I could set the stage for a 165

story that went behind the scenes, and exposed the dark underworld of art theft? I 166

decided to see if there was a way to sell the paintings on the black market, and then 167

recover them. Now that would be a story! More than that, it might even be a movie! I 168

was sure that Riley knew some shady characters. If Chase could set me up with a buyer, 169

then I could call in Hendricks and have her/him make an arrest. 170

I contacted Riley Chase at her/his art gallery. I wanted to feel Riley out first, to 171

see whether I could trust him/her. I had talked to Riley several times about the case, so I 172

knew it would be okay if I brought it up. I put it as a hypothetical. I said, “Just suppose 173

some of the RonArt pieces turned up. How would someone go about selling them?” 174

Well, Riley at first played dumb and acted like s/he had no idea how it would work. I 175

pushed a little more, though. “You must know people who buy stolen art,” I said. 176

“Well,” said Riley, “it would be important to know how much they’re worth.” I asked, 177

“Isn’t finding a buyer the best way to know what they’re worth?” Riley got quiet, and I 178

could see s/he was thinking. Chase said that the only way anyone would be interested 179

was if s/he could authenticate the pieces first. Now I knew I had her/him hooked! I told 180

Chase to meet me at the storage unit on January 5th at 6 a.m. and I would show her/him 181

the pieces. I thought Riley would be discreet. Little did I know how wrong I was! 182

I told Taylor about my conversation with Riley. Well, most of it. I didn’t think Taylor 183

would be too happy about my idea to make the story better. But I did tell Taylor that 184

Riley was going to authenticate the pieces and tell us what they were worth. Taylor 185

~ 23 ~

agreed to take me to the storage unit on the 5th but insisted that s/he would stay in the 186

car, up the road and out of sight. S/he didn’t want to take any chance that s/he would be 187

attached to the RonArt pieces. 188

I met Riley Chase at the storage unit like we planned. I should have known 189

something wasn’t right. Riley was acting stranger than usual. S/he kept fiddling with 190

her/his shirt and talking kind of loudly. Once we got in the storage unit, I went to the 191

hidden panel behind which the paintings had been stored during my previous visit. I 192

couldn’t believe it. There were only two pieces! I looked around but couldn’t find the 193

other two. I should have known at that point that something was very wrong. Taylor 194

must have taken the other paintings out of the unit. S/he must have double-crossed me! 195

I think I started babbling at that point to distract Riley and to try to get her/him out of 196

there quickly. But s/he just kept looking at the remaining pieces. Finally, s/he looked up 197

at me and said, very loudly, “Yes, these look like the real deal.” 198

At that point, all heck broke loose. Cops came in from all directions with guns 199

pointed right at me. Next thing I knew, I was being arrested and charged with 200

possession of stolen property! I looked around for Taylor, hoping s/he’d come to the 201

rescue and explain the situation – take ownership of the whole situation, you know. But 202

the car was gone and s/he was nowhere to be seen. I decided that I’d had enough, and I 203

told Hendricks everything. S/he was much more interested in Taylor Gates than in me. 204

Look. In the end, if I’m guilty of anything, it’s being overly ambitious. When 205

Taylor contacted me, all I could think about was finally getting that story I had been 206

working to get for my entire career. I got Pulitzer stars in my eyes and it caused me to 207

throw caution to the wind and not be thoughtful or careful enough about who and what 208

I was getting involved with. That’s why I took the plea agreement, not because I was a 209

conspirator in any of this. I’m a conspirator in my own stupidity and in not letting my 210

common sense dictate how I should have proceeded in this situation. As long as I testify 211

~ 24 ~

truthfully at Taylor’s trial, I’ll only have to plead to a misdemeanor charge. I’ll get no 212

jail and maybe probation. That’s better than 10 years in the slammer. Totally worth it! 213

At this point, I just want to put it behind me and move on with my life. I’ve lost 214

my job at the paper. I’m negotiating to get a great book deal out of all of this – possibly 215

with film rights attached. It’s looking like at least upper six figures, which ironically is 216

more that I would have gotten in reward money. 217

So that’s why I’m prepared to testify for the prosecution, even if it means giving 218

Claude/ia Hendricks the win after s/he arrested me, falsely accused me of a crime, and 219

made me take a plea deal. I am being held to a higher degree of responsibility than I 220

deserve in this situation and I want Taylor to be held responsible for her/his part in all 221

of this too. At this point, it’s still hard to believe that someone I have known most of my 222

life is involved in such an awful crime. Taylor wasn’t just involved in the theft of some 223

pictures. 224

Taylor Gates and the Gates family have perpetuated a crime on the people of 225

Iowa and a precious piece of our history. I’m just grateful that at least some of the 226

works of the Artist Known as Ron are unharmed and back where they belong. History 227

will show that I helped recover these treasures. And you know what they say? To the 228

victor goes the spoils.229

~ 25 ~

STATEMENT OF CLAUDE/IA HENDRICKS

My name is Claude/ia Hendricks. Since 1994 I have been a special agent with the 1

Iowa State Police. I was born in 1961 in Des Moines, Iowa. My parents were art dealers 2

and operated a world-renowned art brokerage. Their extensive connections gave them 3

access to some of the world’s greatest treasures. I was working for them as soon as I 4

was able to tote and carry. I couldn’t help but develop a deep interest in and knowledge 5

of art. 6

I graduated from Roosevelt High School in 1979. I loved Des Moines, but decided 7

to see some of the world. I got my Bachelor of Arts in Visual and Critical Studies from 8

the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 1983 and my Master of Arts in Critical and 9

Historical Studies from the Royal College of Art in London in 1985. The art brokerage 10

made my parents wealthy, so money was not an object. Plus, I was talented enough to 11

earn substantial scholarships. The extra money enabled me to travel from London all 12

over Europe to visit the incredible museums with their astounding collections. 13

The plan was that I would take over the brokerage from my parents after I was 14

done with school, but since they were in no hurry to retire, I decided to work in the 15

world’s great museums before coming home. I spent a year each in The Louvre, The 16

State Hermitage in St. Petersburg, The Prado in Madrid, and the Vatican Museum in 17

Vatican City. I spent hours admiring the paintings and drawings of the great artists and 18

developed a good eye to be able to distinguish between artists based on styles, 19

pigments, and strokes. 20

I returned to Des Moines in 1990 and continued to work with my parents, but my 21

heart was in it less and less. I was still travelling the world on the pretense of looking 22

for great art finds and broker deals, but I was really using that as an excuse to see great 23

paintings and drawings on “the company dime.” 24

My law enforcement career came, ironically, as a result of being the target of an 25

FBI investigation. In 1992 I was approached by an FBI agent who wanted to question 26

~ 26 ~

me about a Rodin sketch that he said was stolen! Apparently, De Profundis Clamavi 27

disappeared from the Musee Rodin in Paris during the time I was working at The 28

Louvre. Of course, I didn’t steal anything, and I completely cooperated. Through my 29

extensive contacts I was able to help the FBI track down the Rodin and recover it by 30

participating in a sting operation. In fact, the agent who initially accused me of the theft 31

said that I should consider a career in law enforcement. I did enjoy the intrigue, and it 32

gave me a chance to focus on my passion – great art. 33

My parents were disappointed when I told them. They could not understand 34

why I wanted to be “just a cop” when I could carry on a respected family business. 35

They felt that I was sullying myself. My father went so far as to tell me that he did not 36

respect me for what I was doing, and he refused to even acknowledge my job for the 37

rest of his life. I’d always wanted to make him proud of me, but unfortunately, he died 38

in 1996, and never had the chance to see me make a name for myself. I think the old 39

wound is still a significant part of what drives me. It’s too bad he’s not around to see me 40

crack the RonArt theft. 41

While I had to take a substantial pay cut, as law enforcement does not pay 42

anywhere near as well as the antique business, I decided that I enjoyed the intrigue 43

enough to give it a try. I liked the laid-back Iowa life, so I went to work for the Iowa 44

State Police. While I am an ISP employee and mainly work in Iowa, they freely loan me 45

to other agencies that can use my expertise. Let’s face it, there isn’t that much great art 46

to steal in Iowa. The opportunity to travel the country and the world keeps me sane. It’s 47

ironic that I was in New Zealand consulting with the NZSIS (New Zealand Security 48

Intelligence Service) at the time of the art forgery case here in Iowa last year. Between 49

the RonArt theft, the series of art related arson incidents, and the alleged forgery case 50

last year, that pretty much accounts for Iowa art-related crimes over the past 25 years. 51

Now I am very familiar with the RonArt theft that took place on March 3, 1998. I 52

was the lead investigator at the time. The RonArt exhibit was significant because this 53

~ 27 ~

was the first public exhibition of his work since he died in 1988. Collectors and 54

aficionados from around the world attended, and security was extra tight. At least, it 55

was supposed to be. Lou Howe was the security guard on duty on the night of the theft 56

and was the only person in the building. That by itself made Howe the prime suspect. 57

The Boyd Museum had a sophisticated security and alarm system, at least for 1998. The 58

security staff were the only people who knew how to deactivate it. The vast majority of 59

museum thefts are inside jobs, with a security guard acting as either thief or the 60

accomplice that lets the thieves in the building. 61

When I interviewed Howe, s/he told me that around 1:30 a.m. two police officers 62

approached the entrance and knocked on the door. Howe said s/he did not think twice 63

about letting uniformed police in. They entered the museum and told Howe they had a 64

warrant for her/his arrest. They did not tell Howe what the arrest was for, but Howe 65

was involved with enough shady people that it could have been any number of things. 66

Howe said the officers sat her/him in a chair and handcuffed her/him, and that they put 67

duct tape over her/his mouth and a blindfold on her/him. Howe was discovered by 68

museum staff early the next morning, and by then the “officers” and the RonArt works 69

were gone. Howe could not give any helpful description of the “officers.” Howe’s 70

keycard and security code were set to “check in” with the alarm system, so even though 71

the alarm was remotely connected to the police station, the system did not alert the 72

police that there was anything wrong. 73

I was suspicious of Howe’s story from the start. The only way the thieves could 74

have obtained the code for Howe’s shift was to have another accomplice who gave it to 75

them, or they got it directly from Howe. There were no signs that Howe tried to free 76

her/himself at any time during the night – s/he just sat there docilely until s/he was 77

found early the next morning. Howe’s connections to the Des Moines club scene gave 78

her/him an opportunity to mingle with underworld types. I could not find any evidence 79

to corroborate Howe’s story. I was convinced that s/he was in on the heist. 80

~ 28 ~

I also concluded that whoever committed the theft did not work alone. The theft 81

was expertly done. The thieves knew just what to take and what not to take. The works 82

stolen were not the most noteworthy in the collection, but then those would be hard to 83

sell, even on the black market. They also knew how to thwart the museum alarm 84

system. Neither the thieves nor Howe could have just turned it off – it was automatic 85

and could not be controlled by a minimum wage night security guard. Whoever stole 86

the art knew the inner workings of the system. 87

I immediately thought of Sal Amore. Amore is the Frank Abagnale of the art 88

world. Amore had just been released from prison and put on parole in the late Fall of 89

1997 after serving about five years for breaking and entering. I worked that case – it was 90

not hard, as Amore got careless and was caught in the act. There was an historic family 91

compound in Northeast Iowa where there was rumored to be an extensive collection of 92

art and antiques. We were tipped off that there might be an attempt to break into 93

Emerson Hall and clean them out. Fortunately, our informant had accurate information 94

and we were able to intervene. But while that case was open and shut, we’ve had an 95

impossible task of convicting Amore of all of the other thefts s/he was suspected of. 96

Both the Emerson Hall attempted burglary and the RonArt Heist had at least two things 97

in common – a full moon and the thief got around very sophisticated state-of-the-art 98

alarm systems. Amore liked to work during a full moon, as it minimized the need for 99

artificial light, which might attract attention – when the moon’s in the sky like a big 100

pizza pie, that’s Amore. I checked the records, and sure enough on March 3, 1998 at 1:30 101

a.m. a full moon was high in the sky. Amore is a master at alarm systems, and now 102

makes her/his living as a security consultant for museums. Not that s/he’s suddenly 103

honest. S/he probably consults just as much for the bad guys. Once a thief, always a 104

thief. I’ve found that to be particularly true in the art world – forgers forge, burglars 105

burgle, scammers scam. It’s in their blood. 106

~ 29 ~

On March 7, 1998 I interviewed Amore at her/his condo in Des Moines. Amore 107

talked easily to me. S/he didn’t seem to hold any grudge, and s/he was even 108

complimentary of my work, saying that “it’s always good to understand how the other 109

side works.” Amore denied any involvement with the RonArt theft. S/he denied going 110

near the museum and said that s/he’d gone straight and was looking for legitimate 111

work. I surreptitiously scanned Amore’s room while I was talking to her/him. My 112

attention was drawn to a book on a table about the Artist Known as Ron. It was one of 113

those coffee table books, which included images of RonArt’s work. Amore said that s/he 114

was an admirer of RonArt, and that it was too bad that some of the more obscure but 115

valuable works had been stolen. This stood out to me because the specific works and 116

their value had not been released to the public or the press. On top of the book I saw a 117

business card for the Gates Foundation. I asked Amore about that. S/he said that s/he 118

and Thompson Gates went way back, and that Thompson gave her/him a job after s/he 119

got out of prison. 120

This struck me as suspicious, as I had discovered a Gates Foundation business 121

card in Howe’s wallet on the night of the theft. I’m familiar with the Gates family, so I 122

called the Foundation and Thompson was willing to talk to me about Lou and Amore. 123

According to Thompson, Lou did odd jobs for him and her/his son/daughter, Taylor, so 124

it was not surprising that the Foundation’s number would be in Lou’s wallet. I asked 125

Thompson what he knew about Sal Amore. Thompson confirmed that he had known 126

Sal for years – every art collector did. Thompson also confirmed that he helped Amore 127

out by giving her/him a job after s/he was released from prison. Thompson said he was 128

sure that Amore was on the straight and narrow. 129

While I had no particular reason to connect Thompson to the crime, the 130

circumstances were, shall we say, intriguing. The Gates family was very well to do, and 131

Thompson Gates had a private collection of rare fine art works. Thompson had a 132

particular fondness for sketches of rural Iowa scenes, and quite a few of the artist 133

~ 30 ~

Known as Ron’s works focused on that theme. After the Artist Known as Ron died in 134

1988, his family locked up his works. The Grinnell exhibition was the first time they had 135

seen the light of day in 10 years. During that 10 years many museum curators and 136

private collectors, including Thompson Gates, tried to obtain access to Ron’s works. 137

Even I was strongly attracted to them and tried to get Ron’s family to at least give me a 138

private showing. More than once I heard Thompson say at art gatherings that he was 139

desperate to see the RonArt and would even steal them if he could think of a way. He 140

laughed when he said it, but now I had to wonder if he was really joking. 141

So, I had Lou Howe, the museum guard, and Sal Amore, an expert art thief, both 142

connected to Thompson Gates, a wealthy art collector and die-hard RonArt fan. From 143

there the trail went stone cold. Usually stolen art will go underground for a few weeks 144

or months, but then word will spread that it’s for sale, or someone will come forward to 145

claim the reward. But not the RonArt works – they just disappeared. It was the 146

disappointment of my career that I was never able to break the case for all of those 147

years. I’m just glad I am able to bring this to juice now. It certainly adds to my 148

reputation as an investigator. 149

Anyway, the case warmed up again on December 30, 2018. That’s the day I got a 150

phone call from Riley Chase. Chase is an art appraiser and dealer. S/he’s a little 151

eccentric, and s/he’s been connected with some shady people, but s/he’s good at what 152

s/he does and someone whose opinion I highly value. 153

Chase told me that s/he was contacted by Brooke Poole about authenticating 154

some purported RonArt works. Brooke is a newspaper reporter, and general pain-in-155

the-butt, whose ambitions far outweigh her/his abilities. Brooke has been obsessed with 156

the RonArt case. I can’t tell you the number of times since 1998 s/he has contacted me 157

with bogus leads and crackpot theories. I figured that this was just one more, but then 158

Riley told me that Brooke was acting unusually strange and talking about selling the 159

~ 31 ~

paintings on the black market. It was also odd that Brooke had not contacted me 160

directly, so I decided to trust Chase and pursue it. 161

Riley told me about her/his conversation with Brooke, and that Brooke wanted to 162

meet Riley at a storage unit to show her/him the art. I immediately went to work setting 163

up a sting operation. The meeting was to take place on January 5, 2018 at 6:00 a.m. At 164

4:00 a.m. I and several other officers took concealed positions where we could keep the 165

storage unit in sight. Chase went to the local ISP office at 5:00 a.m. so that s/he could be 166

set up with a wire that would transmit her/his conversation with Brooke to my officers. 167

Brooke appeared at the storage unit at 5:55 a.m., and Riley arrived two minutes later. 168

The entire conversation between Brooke and Riley was recorded and transcribed. 169

Brooke used a key s/he took from her/his pocket to unlock the storage unit and both 170

Brooke and Riley went inside. I lost sight of them for less than five minutes while they 171

were inside the unit. The conversation at that point consisted primarily of Brooke 172

pontificating about the Artist Known as Ron, while I assume Riley was examining the 173

art. At the end of three minutes I heard Riley give the code phrase – “real deal.” That 174

was our signal to move in. 175

As we did, a car parked approximately 100 yards up the road started, and its 176

tires squealed as it pulled away from the curb and sped off. I placed Brooke under 177

arrest for possession of stolen property and advised her/him of her/his rights. 178

I searched Brooke and recovered a key that fit the padlock to the storage unit, and 179

Brooke’s wallet contained Brooke’s driver’s license and Riley Chase’s business card. 180

Brooke did not have any car keys on her/his person. 181

I searched the storage shed and recovered two RonArt works: “Cherry Oh Baby” 182

and “Many Rivers to Cross.” Also, in the shed were several items of sound equipment 183

with “Parkington Lane” stamped on them. Parkington Lane is a nightclub in Des 184

Moines owned by Lou Howe. The sound equipment was covered with a thick layer of 185

dust. I recovered several pieces of luggage with the name “Taylor Gates” on them. 186

~ 32 ~

These were clean and did not appear to have been in the storage shed very long. 187

Finally, there were several old books and filing cabinets full of business records, all with 188

Thompson Gate’s name on them. The filing cabinets had dust on them, but there were 189

marks in the dust that were clearly fingerprints. None of them were distinct enough to 190

collect. 191

Our search of the storage unit revealed a false wall behind some shelving units. 192

While there were no items stored there, it was definitely a large enough space to hold 193

paintings. 194

Brooke was cooperative with me and said that s/he had only been hoping for a 195

scoop on the RonArt theft story. Brooke said that the storage unit belonged to Taylor 196

Gates, and that Taylor had contacted her/him about getting rid of the RonArt works. 197

Brooke said it was all Taylor’s idea to sell the works on the black market, and that s/he 198

was only going to let things go far enough to make the story good enough for a Pulitzer, 199

at which point s/he would call me to recover the paintings for the museum. Brooke said 200

Taylor drove them both to the storage unit to meet with Riley, but that Taylor wanted to 201

stay out of sight. Brooke said it was Gates who sped off when the police moved in. 202

I believed that Brooke was being honest with me, mostly because Brooke is not 203

savvy enough to be a mastermind of anything. However, being naïve is no defense to a 204

criminal act, so we arranged with the prosecutor to cut Brooke a deal in exchange for 205

cooperation with the case against Taylor Gates. As long as Brooke testifies truthfully at 206

the trial, s/he will only have to plead guilty to a misdemeanor with suspended jail 207

sentence and a short time on probation. Brooke will also have to donate 50% of the 208

profits from any book deals from this to the Boyd Museum. 209

While I did not catch Taylor Gates in the act, I did have sufficient evidence to 210

charge Taylor with possession of stolen property. Taylor was arrested at her/his home 211

without incident. Taylor claimed that s/he only wanted to return the paintings without 212

anyone knowing that her/his father had arranged to have them stolen back in 1998. 213

~ 33 ~

Taylor blamed Brooke for any plan to sell the paintings on the black market. I asked 214

Taylor if s/he was innocent why s/he sped off when Brooke was arrested. Why didn’t 215

Taylor stay and explain? At that point, Taylor said s/he had nothing left to say.216

~ 34 ~

STATEMENT OF LOU HOWE

My name is Lou Howe. I own Parkington Lane, THE number one venue for live 1

music, dancing and entertainment in Des Moines. Before I owned Parkington Lane, I 2

did a variety of odd jobs – including working as a security guard, which is how I got 3

mixed up in all of this. I think it’s pretty cool that someone like me can rise from 4

nothing to become the owner and operator of the top night club in the state. Through 5

my connections, I’m able to land big name acts who want to play smaller venues for 6

ambience and to recapture to feel of a band or artist just starting out. We’ve got that 7

vibe. At one point in my life, I could have been the next big thing. That was the plan 8

anyway. I’ve got the talent, but at the time I just didn’t get the breaks. I’m still working 9

on my artistic career – not only as the owner of Parkington Lane but as an artist myself. 10

I’ve reinvented myself as a performance artist and occasionally strut my stuff between 11

acts at the club. My nightclub is great – Amazing. Legendary. Huge. 12

I grew up outside of What Cheer, Iowa in a farming family. But I wanted more 13

from life. My dad wanted me to get into the family business, but I was into other things. 14

It was the 1990’s you know. I wanted to be in a band – NSync, Spice Girls, Nirvana, TLC 15

– I have a lot of talent and diverse interests. That’s what I dreamed of, but that wasn’t 16

how my family rolls, so they kind of disowned me. I dropped out of school, got a GED, 17

and moved to the big city – Des Moines. 18

But when I was hanging out in the Des Moines clubs, I got too mixed up with the 19

nightlife. I won’t lie, there were frequent all-night parties and raves, dancing, you know 20

the whole rhythm of the night thing. It took a toll on my own music career. I was 21

drifting in a bad way. Some of the people I met along the way, though, were really nice 22

to me and looked after me. I think they saw that I was worth redeeming and that I still 23

had a bright future. This big land developer from Chicago was in the clubs a lot – 24

usually meeting with other important people in the VIP area or privately in a back 25

room. The rumor was that this Beatty Wiese character was mobbed up, but he was 26

~ 35 ~

always real nice to me. In fact, Wiese was the guy who got me the security job at the 27

museum. It was the night shift, designed to keep me from partying all night long. He 28

saw my potential and was trying to keep me out of harm’s way. In fact, he’s also a 29

prime investor, along with the Gates in Parkington Lane. They’ve all been very kind to 30

me through the years. 31

As I said, I took a job working as a security guard at the Boyd Museum of Art in 32

Grinnell. This was around November of 1997. 33

From working at the museum, I learned about the Gates family. Thompson, the 34

patriarch of the family, and his kid, Taylor, are both well known. They’re rich and all 35

and liked to spread their wealth around in the community. They were big in the art 36

world, so they were in and out of the museum constantly. They regularly held evening 37

events at the museum, so I became really familiar with them. They were like serious 38

VIPs in central Iowa. Taylor used to pay me extra to do personal stuff for her/him and 39

Thompson. Like driving people to and from the museum, helping set up at fundraisers, 40

and serving drinks at museum parties and stuff. I also did miscellaneous errands for 41

them – I learned not to talk about all of the stuff they had me do. I’ve found that being 42

quiet is a great trait to have – and results in monetary bonuses. 43

Sometimes I did stupid stuff. Taylor came to me one night in February or early 44

March of 1998 and told me that s/he had a ‘special project’ for me. “You’ve worked for 45

my dad a few months now, Lou. He trusts you. He knows you want to do more with 46

your life than be a security guard. He wants to give you that chance. What do you 47

think?” 48

Well of course I was interested. I could never dream of pursing my artistic career 49

or opening up my own club on the money I was making working security. Even with 50

the extra amounts I got doing favors for the Gates and the Boyd Museum weren’t going 51

to get me where I needed to be, so yeah, I was interested in whatever Taylor or 52

Thompson had in mind. I was surprised that Thompson was interested though. Other 53

~ 36 ~

than a few meetings in the backrooms of night clubs, he always seemed pretty buttoned 54

down. I wouldn’t have guessed that he would finance a club. I asked Taylor what I had 55

to do. Her/his answer surprised me. 56

“Just some favors. You know; some extra work to show you have what it takes to 57

take risks, be smart, and be discreet. The first one is easy. In fact, you don’t really even 58

need to do anything – just don’t do something. My dad has arranged for some VIPs to 59

have private access to the museum on March 3, early in the morning, before the public 60

shows up. I’ve arranged for you to work that shift. All you have to do is not lock the 61

back door to the alley.” 62

That sounded really weird to me – VIPs late at night, through an unlocked back 63

door? But, hey, I’m not proud of it now, but if that’s all I had to do to get my club going, 64

who was I to complain? Who was I to question the Gates’ business? Anyway, Taylor 65

gave me $500 cash on the spot, and told me that there would be more to come. “And 66

whatever happens,” s/he said, “just play along. You’re smart. You’ll know what to do.” 67

So, I played along. I left the door open, and about 1:30 in the morning a couple of 68

“cops” showed up. They were really acting it up, with their guns out and all. It was 69

pretty obvious though. Their shirts weren’t even tucked in and they were wearing 70

funny hats. They looked more like they were dressed as Canadian Mounties for 71

Halloween. People say they saw the fake cop dudes staking out the museum for an 72

hour waiting in a beat-up hatchback of some sort. Not the kind of car a real cop would 73

drive. Anyway, they said that they had a warrant for my arrest. So, they put me against 74

the wall and handcuffed me. Now it’s entirely legit that there might have been an 75

outstanding warrant or two out for me – remember I used to party pretty hard and did 76

some really stupid stuff. For example, I almost ran down some skinny dippers late one 77

night on the river with this boat I “borrowed” after having a few too many to drink. 78

Um, the clock has run out on that by now hasn’t it? 79

~ 37 ~

Anyway, they duct taped me to a chair. They took my security key card, and 80

that’s the last I saw of them. They never asked me for any codes or anything. They 81

apparently took a bunch of art made by a famous Iowa dude named Ron. But I knew 82

what was going on. I just did what Taylor told me – I played along and that’s the story I 83

told the real cops. Well, of course, I didn’t let on that I knew the fake cops were fake. I 84

had to say that they looked like real cops so that it would make sense that I would let 85

them in. The real cops totally bought it. And, hey, what I said was technically nothing 86

but the truth. 87

For years afterward, everyone thought my story was pretty thin, and that I was 88

involved with the Iowa art theft people. Ironically that seemed to give me some street 89

cred in the clubs. Of course, the cops also thought I was involved because I was a club 90

kid and I hung out with underworld types. Allegedly. But the thing of it is, I never did 91

get caught. Questioned a couple of times, but never arrested. The lesson I learned from 92

that is a lie is only a lie if someone can prove it. 93

Taylor Gates turned out to be a real coward. S/he skipped town shortly after the 94

heist, and I never heard anything at all about her/him until s/he dropped back in when 95

Thompson was real sick and dying. What an opportunist! After Taylor left, I think 96

Thompson pretty much wrote her/him off. Thompson came to rely more on more on 97

me. He had me take care of a lot of personal and business matter for him. Thompson 98

looked on me as sort of a replacement for Taylor – the dependable child Thompson 99

should have had. 100

My status with Thompson all changed suddenly when Taylor came back. Like I 101

said, total opportunist. Taylor played the whole prodigal child routine, and I can’t 102

blame Thompson for buying it. I mean what parent wouldn’t? No one wants to die 103

hating their own kid. I was pretty much frozen out after that. I understood how 104

Thompson felt, but there was no reason to kick me to the curb. I blame Taylor’s 105

influence for that. 106

~ 38 ~

Anyway, money-wise, Thompson proved good to his word. He invested heavily 107

in Parkington Lane and arranged for some friends to also invest. Beatty Wiese helped 108

me out a lot – and all I had to do was to keep him informed of what the Gates, both 109

Thompson and Taylor, were up to, and to occasionally spread some of his cash around 110

town. He called it “community investment.” Listen if it wasn’t for Thompson, I’d still be 111

a lowly security guard wanna be club owner – or even worse. Remember, my life 112

wasn’t exactly on the greatest trajectory once upon a time. I wasn’t in Thompson’s will 113

or anything. I didn’t really expect to be. I’m fine with that. Setting me up with my own 114

club is all the reward I need. 115

It wasn’t until just recently that I admitted that I was involved in the art heist. I 116

know that the statue of limits thing is way past and that they can’t touch me for that 117

now, so I don’t even care who knows what now. I knew Taylor and her/his family were 118

involved in the thefts since Taylor paid me to leave the door open that night and to 119

keep my mouth shut. For Taylor to be playing dumb now is a joke. I never said 120

anything since Thompson was cool with me and trusted me and invested in my club – 121

and nobody would believe me anyway. But now Taylor’s trying to pin her/his stuff on 122

Brooke Poole. That’s not cool. Thompson would have been righteous. You do your 123

thing, you keep a low profile. If you get caught, you keep your mouth shut. And if you 124

have to do time, you do your time. Nobody likes a rat, especially a lying rat who 125

squeals on people who had nothing to do with it. I hope Taylor gets everything that’s 126

coming to her/him. 127

I don’t know anything about what may or may not have been in that storage 128

shed. Sure, my name is on the rental agreement, and I had my bookkeeper send the rent 129

every month, but that was all for Thompson. He liked to have some stashes that he 130

could keep out of the public eye, and when his name was on something word tended to 131

get around. I put some old sound gear and stuff in there a few years ago, but I haven’t 132

been in since. I don’t even know if I could find the key. I had no idea priceless stolen 133

~ 39 ~

paintings were in there, that’s for sure. Why should you believe me? Because if I had 134

known they were there we wouldn’t be here now; as soon as Thompson passed I would 135

have taken them and sold them off myself or sent them back to the museum for the 136

reward money and be like the big hero, discoverer of stolen art and such. 137

Yeah, I know Sal Amore. We’re not pals or anything, but s/he comes into the club 138

now and then. See, I designed Parkington Lane with lots of little nooks and crannies 139

where you can have a private tete-a-tete. Sal and Thompson used to meet there, and I 140

also saw Sal with some of the shadier sort, even after claiming to go straight. I know Sal 141

says s/he’s strictly for the good guys now, so who am I to say? It’s not my business. 142

Parkington Lane is my business, and any other business that goes on in my business is 143

not my business, if you know what I mean. 144

So, I may still do some stupid stuff sometimes but I’m actually a refined 145

business-person. Like I totally leveraged Taylor and her/his family’s involvement in the 146

1998 RonArt heist to encourage her/him to invest in Parkington Lane. Information is 147

power, right? I have no idea where Taylor’s investment funds came from, but I know it 148

wasn’t her/his family money. S/he is a strictly silent investor. Those kind of folks don’t 149

want to be publicly associated with a person like me. 150

But Taylor’s family is not as pristine as most people think. S/he acts like her/his 151

dad is like this parallelogram of virtue or what not, but I saw with my own eyes that 152

Thompson Gates was good friends with Sal Amore and others who might walk on the 153

wrong side of the street. I also overheard a conversation between Amore and Taylor 154

that confirmed Taylor knew a lot more than s/he’s letting on. Taylor was in the PL with 155

Amore. Taylor told Amore that when Thompson died Taylor had sniffed around 156

looking for the stolen art. Taylor told Amore that s/he found what s/he was looking for 157

in the old man’s storage unit. Taylor asked Amore for help in moving the stuff. At that 158

point I had to go deal with a problem customer, so that’s all I heard. 159

As I said, knowledge is power and I had investors. What more did I need?160

~ 40 ~

STATEMENT OF TAYLOR GATES

My name is Taylor Gates. I am proud to profess that I am a native Iowan, born 1

and bred in Grinnell. I grew up there; graduated from high school there. Class of ’93. 2

Go Tigers! Man, I remember those days; I was such a young, wild thing. You see, 3

growing up I never wanted for anything because we had so much money. My parents, 4

my father in particular, were great role models and tried to steer me down the right 5

path, but I was bull headed and thought I knew everything. Like most high school kids, 6

right? But other kids don’t have a trust fund that allows them to act on their whims. I 7

did. I’m not proud of it looking back, but I thought I was entitled to much, much more 8

than Grinnell had to offer. 9

I think my father saw that. He tried everything he could to get me on the straight 10

and narrow. After high school, he forced me to help out with the family foundation. I 11

am sure you don’t need me to explain it, everyone in Iowa has heard of the Gates 12

Family Foundation (No, not THAT one! Cousin Bill’s got just a little more money!) But I 13

guess I’ll go into detail if you need me to. The Gates Family Foundation is a charitable 14

organization that advances Iowa’s interests by providing funding to worthy causes, 15

such as educating Iowa’s youth through scholarship and providing grants to causes that 16

advance local community interests throughout Iowa. I always knew the importance of 17

the Foundation, but back then, like I said, I wanted to be running things. 18

My father made me a glorified personal assistant. I ran errands. I paid 19

contractors. I was the foot soldier. “Pay so and so, Taylor,” or “Arrange to pick up so 20

and so from the airport, Taylor,” my father would say. But though I was doing a bunch 21

of running around, he would never let me help with the decision making. He didn’t 22

even keep me in the loop on who it was I was picking up or what I was paying. 23

Sometimes I could figure out the who or the where, but never the why. It was during 24

this errand-running that is how I actually met Lou Howe. S/he was working as a 25

security guard at the museum. Not too bright, but my dad seemed to like her/him. I 26

~ 41 ~

paid her/him a few times. I have no idea what for. Like I said, I was just a foot soldier. 27

This whole story that I paid Lou to leave the door of the museum open on the night of 28

the RonArt theft is ridiculous. Like I said, I paid her/him ALL THE TIME for random 29

things, but I never knew what they were for. If s/he is saying I specifically told her/him 30

what to do, you know s/he is lying because s/he didn’t do anything for me. S/he 31

answered solely to my father. 32

Looking back on it, my father was just trying to teach me what it is like at the 33

bottom so that I could appreciate the position at the top. My father was always looking 34

out for the little people and wanted to make sure that I appreciated what it was like to 35

be a have-not. But I didn’t see it that way at the time. You can imagine how much I 36

regret that now. My father was such a great man, and I never gave him much credit for 37

it. Nope, I basically tolerated being the Foundation’s stooge for about six years. In 38

March 1998 I hit the road. I know Claude/ia Hendricks is saying that I was running 39

from the law, but that’s a lie. I had nothing to do with the RonArt theft. The only law 40

that I was running from was my old man. And yes, I may have been running around 41

with a rough crowd at that time, but that’s no reason to think I was on the wrong side of 42

the law. I was never charged with a crime. I had my trust fund that basically allowed 43

me to do whatever I wanted. So, I told my father I wouldn’t tolerate being his lackey 44

anymore and began travelling the world on my family’s cash. 45

I stayed away for practically 16 years. I only came home for occasional holidays 46

or brief periods of time. I think my dad might have put a stop to my gallivanting, but 47

my mother is such a kind-hearted woman and I am her only child. She wanted and 48

hoped that I could figure life out on my own. I’ve seen photos of mother from her teens 49

and early twenties – it all makes sense to me, she was a hippie through and through; 50

flowers in her hair, tie-dye galore, probably had her share of turning on and tuning out. 51

How she ever ended up with Dad is a mystery! But she was my advocate at home and 52

made sure that the money kept flowing on my sojourn of discovery. 53

~ 42 ~

And I did live life in the harshest ways. I ran through the yearly trust fund 54

allotment sometimes by July or August and then had to beg, borrow and steal to make 55

ends meet until the next check. Every once in a while, mother would sense my situation 56

and somehow found a way to send more cash my way to tide me over. I was in the 57

midst of slumming it off the grid when my father was diagnosed with cancer in 2015. I 58

was living in a commune in northern Idaho. I’m not sure how she found me, but mother 59

got the news to me about dad. That woke me up. I was heartbroken. I came home 60

straight away. The doctors only gave him a year, and that put everything in perspective 61

really quickly, let me tell you. All that lost time with my dad, it still gets me. Anyway, 62

once I got home, I got to work. My father was ill but had a fighter’s spirit, he lived two 63

years past what the doctors gave him. So, I took over the Foundation operations to give 64

my dad what he couldn’t have had without me – the time and space he needed to fight 65

that fight. 66

And boy, did that experience make me grow up in a whole new way, and 67

probably in the way my father always wanted me to. Taking care of my sick father and 68

completely distraught mother was a full-time job in itself. Not to mention all of the 69

operations that go into the Foundation. A lot of things were a mess. Apparently, my 70

dad let Lou Howe do a lot of work for him over the years. Like I said before, Lou is not 71

too bright. I honestly don’t know what convinced my father that Lou had any kind of 72

head for business. When I was young, I just thought it was all fun and prestige. 73

Ordering people around and throwing events. Sounds grand - right? It’s not; it is a lot 74

of work, organization, and diplomacy. I understood finally the value of money to so 75

many people that didn’t have it. I got Lou out of the way, but I invested in her/his 76

nightclub to help ease the transition. I stopped my money-wasting ways and threw 77

myself into making the Foundation an even better vehicle for social change. My father 78

was able to help me with the transition before he passed away. He introduced me to his 79

society of friends and colleagues – really some of the top movers and shakers on the 80

~ 43 ~

planet – and passed along useful tidbits about who to trust, who not to anger, who 81

might hold the rope in times of trouble. I think he was proud of me at that point. I 82

idolized my father. I am glad that I got to make him proud of the person I’d become. 83

My father told me that the Foundation had gone through a few rough patches recently 84

in terms of investment income and cash flow. He admitted to me that he had made 85

some bad financial decisions – investing in an Angel network through Cobra Kai 86

Investments for one – but that through some prudent advice and some dealings with 87

friends and business colleagues, the Gates Foundation was now on firm footing. 88

That is why I was so shocked when I found those two RonArt paintings in that 89

old storage unit. You see, my father died on October 17, 2018, and I am the executor of 90

my father’s estate. While I was cataloguing all the property, I found an envelope with a 91

key and the address of a storage facility in Montezuma. Both the writing on the 92

envelope and the written address inside were in an unrecognizable hand –as if someone 93

else had entrusted Dad with the key rather than him placing it there himself. I decided 94

to check out the facility, just to see what was there and if anything valuable needed to 95

be added to the probated property list. Truthfully, I was hoping that I might find a car 96

or something. When I was little, Dad had this sweet 1960’s era Mercedes convertible. I 97

never knew what happened to that car – so I had my hopes up! I visited the site for the 98

first time in early November and found only some old equipment – a mixing board, a 99

couple of amps, a few mic stands – nothing of value; and lots of empty space. So, I 100

decided to take advantage of the emptiness and clear out some of dad’s old filing 101

cabinets until I had a chance to sort through them. As I was moving the cabinets and 102

files into the storage shed, I must have bumped against the wall and a hidden space 103

emerged. 104

Now I grew up in Grinnell and was actively working for the Foundation in 1998 105

when the robbery occurred. So, I recognized the paintings right away. The Foundation 106

was very involved with the museum and helped with funding. And that kind of crime 107

~ 44 ~

gets a lot of press regardless. And let’s not forget the reward money. When those 108

paintings went missing there was a reward for their return, and the pot kept getting 109

bigger the longer the paintings were at large. And unlike the trust fund, there were no 110

strings attached; that is the one thing about trust fund money, you can’t just do 111

whatever you want with it. 112

Anyway, I had no clue what to do. I was confused and hurt. Why were these 113

paintings in hidden storage in a unit that my father had access to? Was he involved in 114

some way? With the heist itself? Helping to hide the paintings for someone else? I 115

didn’t want to believe it. But I knew who to talk to, right? I mean Sal Amore had gone 116

to prison for being a high-end thief. And s/he knew my father when they were younger, 117

I figured Sal would have the answers I needed, so I called her/him. I know that 118

probably makes me look guilty, but I had to know my father’s involvement. 119

Amore told me the whole story – or at least her/his version of the story; anymore 120

I’m not sure what to believe. Amore told me that back in the late 1990’s, Sal was 121

struggling financially; that my father coveted those pieces of art; how my father 122

suggested in January of 1998 that Amore steal the RonArt paintings. Although the story 123

seems ludicrous, I was crushed. I know that I should have called the police to turn in 124

the paintings after I found them, but my father was my idol, I didn’t want to expose 125

him. And the family name would have been tarnished right along with his. My ultimate 126

goal has always been to get those paintings back to the museum. I just thought I would 127

figure out a way to do it that did not expose my father or the family name. My poor 128

mother had already lost the love of her life, could I put her through the knowledge that 129

he had committed such a huge crime? I thought if there was some way to distance the 130

paintings return from the original crime that might insulate the family. I even 131

considered just leaving them on the front steps of the museum, but that would raise 132

more questions than not. 133

~ 45 ~

Anyway, I called on an old childhood friend, Brooke Poole. Back when I was still 134

a kid, the Pooles were our neighbors. The Gates’ and the Pooles did so much together, 135

and almost always had Sunday brunch together. My good friend from that time was 136

Brooke. We did everything together and I trusted her/him. I also hadn’t spoken to 137

her/him for years, but a friendship like that with such a solid foundation, it was the 138

kind of friendship that you could just pick up after years and it would be just as strong 139

as when you left it, or so I thought. Of course, I now completely regret trusting Brooke, 140

but how was I to know that s/he was a no-good con artist? All I can tell you is, the 141

Brooke that I know now is not the Brooke I knew then. 142

So, I contacted Brooke, not only because s/he was a childhood friend that I 143

thought I could trust, but because Brooke was an investigative journalist. I figured that 144

s/he would have a lot of contacts that might make it easier for me to get the artworks 145

where they belonged without dragging the Gates name through the mud. Don’t 146

reporters always have to protect their sources and work in clandestine ways? Anyway, 147

that was my gamble. Plus, I knew that Brooke had a particular interest in the robbery 148

from way back. So, I figured that we could figure out a way to get the art to the proper 149

owner and Brooke could make her/his name in reporting. It would have been win/win, 150

if Brooke had not gotten so greedy. 151

I found out too late that once Brooke got a look at those two paintings, all s/he 152

was seeing was dollar signs for her/himself. I honestly had no idea that Brooke planned 153

to sell them all along. I should have seen through it. There were signs. For example, I 154

wanted to act on the paintings right away, but Brooke convinced me to wait until we 155

could authenticate the works. S/he said that Amore was not trustworthy and that the 156

paintings could be fakes, why face exposure if we don’t have the real deal, right? It 157

made sense in some weird way, so I agreed. Brooke said that s/he had a source, Riley 158

Chase, who could authenticate. S/he even said that Riley would be able to tell us how 159

much the paintings were worth. I don’t know why that would be relevant, because we 160

~ 46 ~

were just trying to figure out if they were real – and, if so, get them returned hush-hush. 161

But I shrugged off my concerns at the time thinking that I may just be part of the whole 162

authentication process. I was so relieved to have a plan, and blinded by my trust in my 163

childhood friend, that I didn’t look deeper. 164

After Brooke met with Chase, s/he said that s/he had arranged a meeting at the 165

storage unit. I thought that was crazy! The last thing I wanted was for anyone else to 166

know the storage unit even existed! I told Brooke that was a dumb idea, and that I’d 167

take her/him there but no way would I get out of the car or be anywhere that I could be 168

seen. I offered to move the paintings to a neutral location – a hotel room or something – 169

but s/he said that s/he had already set up the meet. S/he assured me that s/he would not 170

tell Chase about me. It didn’t occur to me that there was other identifying information 171

in the storage unit that might tie my family to the missing art. We arrived at the unit 172

about ten minutes early, and then Chase showed up. Brooke met her/him at the gate 173

and I watched them go in toward the unit. I was getting really nervous. I had no idea 174

how long it took to authenticate a painting, but it seemed like it was taking forever. 175

The everything went nuts. The place was swarming with cops. I freaked out and 176

got out of there fast! In hindsight that wasn’t a good idea. Later that day Agent 177

Hendricks showed up to arrest me. I cooperated – I had no reason not to. But then s/he 178

asked where the other two paintings were. I told her/him that there were no “other two 179

paintings.” That’s when I realized that Brooke had turned on me. 180

I don’t know why Brooke would betray me, but that is exactly what this is, 181

betrayal. I never intended on keeping or selling those paintings. I don’t know why 182

Brooke is saying that there were four pieces. That’s just not true. There were only two in 183

the storage unit, and they are now back at the museum. I didn’t keep any for myself. 184

Why would I? I was always going to give them back to their rightful owner as soon as I 185

realized what they were. What motive do I have to sell the paintings? I told you, I have 186

~ 47 ~

stopped my spendthrift ways. Brooke is just trying to save her/his own skin by 187

throwing me under the bus so s/he can get a plea deal – and a better story to sell. 188

It’s true that after I left home my father wrote me out of his will. I don’t blame 189

him. What I did was pretty rotten. But after I came back home and we patched things 190

up, he told me that he’d put me back in. I didn’t ask him to or anything – I still had a 191

little money left in my trust fund. He died before he could meet with the lawyers to 192

change the terms of his will. But that would not turn me into a thief! 193

In hindsight, I wish I had taken Amore up on her/his offer to use her/his 194

influence and connections to help me get rid of those cursed paintings, instead of 195

calling Brooke. Then all of the paintings would be resting safely in a museum, I’d have 196

the reward money, and I for sure wouldn’t be in the trouble I am now. That’s the 197

problem with being a good Samaritan, you frequently got caught in the tides of 198

intrigue. My motivations were pure – the people I trusted, not so much.199

~ 48 ~

STATEMENT OF SAL AMORE

My name is Sal Amore. I was born in Manhattan in 1954, but when I was about 1

10 or so, my family moved to Taos, New Mexico, where my mother ran an art gallery. 2

But I still consider myself a New Yorker at heart. As a child, we would take annual trips 3

back to New York City to visit my Noona and to spend time in the city. My mom never 4

wanted me to lose touch with my roots. 5

Maybe art is just in my blood, but I have always loved museums. I could spend 6

days getting lost in the Met or wandering around the MoMa, the Guggenheim, or the 7

Whitney. New York is the place to be if you have a love for art like I do. In fact, the 8

Whitney is where I first discovered the Artist Known as Ron; they have a pretty big 9

collection of his work there. 10

My love of art followed me to the University of Denver, where I obtained my 11

undergraduate degree in Art History and my Masters in International Business. The 12

plan had always been to travel and become an art dealer; I’ve always loved to travel 13

and my degree allowed me to study different regions, languages and cultures. 14

University of Denver is where I met Thompson Gates. We bonded immediately. 15

Thompson came from money and, like me, he loved to travel. During our Sophomore 16

year, we spent the Summer touring Europe visiting all of the famous museums on the 17

Continent. It was an incredible trip and one I still remember fondly to this day. 18

Following college, Thompson and I stayed in touch, though we took different 19

paths. Thompson settled down and ran the Gates Family Foundation. Image was very 20

important to him and, at least from the outside, his life always appeared perfect. My 21

life, on the other hand, was a little more complicated. After college, I could not find 22

work in my field so I took what job I could and went to work for Nadipuram 23

International, where I was an international business manager. My work took me around 24

the globe and allowed me to meet many new and exciting people. So, while I was not 25

necessarily dealing with art, I was still able to satisfy my wanderlust. 26

~ 49 ~

I ended up loving my job and put everything I had into my work until June 1987 27

when I was unexpectedly downsized. To think that I had dedicated my career to these 28

people! The loss of my jet-set lifestyle was devastating. I missed the excitement of it all – 29

the travel, the food, the culture. It took months for me to find a new job and even then, 30

it was nothing like the job I had at Nadipuram. 31

As the months passed, I began to run low on funds. In my travels, I had met a 32

few people dealing in fenced art and other high-end items, which gave me an idea: I 33

could steal a couple of pieces and secure some additional money. I never meant it to be 34

a career; it was just meant to tide me over until I could get back on my feet. It never 35

occurred to me that I’d be good at being a cat burglar or that I’d like it so much. 36

My first burglary was both terrifying and thrilling. I planned each detail to 37

perfection. The best part was feeling of having the painting in my hands – it was so 38

incredibly beautiful and I felt richer just holding it. I left the more obvious items, the 39

TVs, the furniture, and jewelry as those items were les marketable in Europe where I 40

had my contacts. I continued to burgle homes for several years, both for the money and 41

for the thrill of holding those glorious paintings. And then one evening in August 1991, 42

that all came to a halt. I was unexpectedly surprised by a homeowner returning home 43

early. I spent the next five years of my life in the State Penitentiary. 44

After prison, it was difficult for me to secure a new job. I had become a pariah to 45

the people in my old life. But Thompson was still quietly there for me, which says a lot 46

about Thompson Gates. His public reputation really meant everything to him, and even 47

though he would do everything to keep his image tarnish free, he still found a way to 48

help an old friend. After a few months of trying to keep my head above water, I reached 49

out to Thompson to see if he could help. Thompson was a true friend – in January 1997, 50

he found a job for me at a warehouse he owned through the Gates Foundation. 51

I worked for a year at the warehouse packing and delivering crates until one day, 52

in January 1998, Thompson approached me and asked if I was interested in a side-53

~ 50 ~

project to make a little extra money. We met for dinner at a local hole-in-the-wall where 54

Thompson, to my dismay, explained that the Foundation was desperately low on 55

funding. His father had started the Foundation and he was so afraid of what would 56

happen if people knew that he had run the Foundation into the ground. He was scared 57

and desperate. 58

With tears in his eyes, he told me about the RonArt Exhibit at the Boyd Museum 59

of Art, set to be released for public viewing in the coming weeks. He played to my love 60

of art and the thrill of the steal to convince me to help him. So, I did. Thompson was an 61

old friend and he had helped me in my time of need so I was more than happy to return 62

the favor. Besides, I missed that feeling of a rare painting between my fingertips. 63

I don’t have any problem telling you about the RonArt Heist – the statute of 64

limitations was up long ago. I’ve paid all of my debts to society. I can tell you 65

unequivocally that Taylor Gates had nothing to do with the RonArt Heist. Taylor Gates 66

knew nothing about it. At the time, s/he was a snot nosed kid buried in her/his teen 67

angst, and focused only on burning through her/his trust fund cash as fast as possible. 68

Thompson would do everything in his power to protect Taylor from the seamier side of 69

his life. That continued until the day Thompson died. And as a close friend of his I have 70

been very protective of Taylor. To this day, I don’t believe that Taylor knows the deals 71

that Thompson had to negotiate to get the Foundation back on solid footing. Let’s just 72

say that some of the transactions may have been a little less than legal. 73

I can corroborate that Lou Howe was involved in the original heist. I had an 74

errand guy – not Taylor – pay Lou $500 to leave a door unlocked, go along with 75

whatever happened, and then act like s/he’d been robbed. I was a little surprised that 76

part went as well as it did. Lou is a nice enough person, but not the brightest bulb on 77

the Christmas tree, if you know what I mean. I mean, what kind of idiot settles for 500 78

bucks for a theft worth hundreds of thousands? AND never thinks to ask to get in on 79

more of the action? I don’t know why Thompson and Taylor decided to invest in Lou’s 80

~ 51 ~

club, that seemed like a sure way to lose money. Maybe Lou was applying a little 81

leverage after all? 82

On March 3, 1998, I and an accomplice named Jonesy, who is now long gone, 83

disguised ourselves as cops and went to the museum at about 1:30 a.m. I was a little 84

surprised Lou didn’t recognize me. The disguises weren’t that good. It just goes to show 85

how dumb Lou is. We duct taped Lou to a chair. I took her/his key card, and we took 86

six of the RonArt pieces. I had done extensive research on the works in the special 87

exhibit and knew the value of each. I focused on taking not the most valuable nor the 88

most recognizable pieces, but the ones that I knew would attract investment interest 89

among my European clients. Getting around the alarm system was a piece of cake for 90

someone of my skill level. Thompson and I were able to sell two of the RonArt pieces: 91

Three Little Birds and One Love, I think to a private interest in Spain and split the 92

profits. That was all both of us needed to get back on our feet and from that day on we 93

both vowed to go straight. I really never knew what Thompson planned to do with the 94

other four pieces and I didn’t ask. Not my circus; not my monkeys. I have no idea what 95

happened to the two that are still missing. Maybe Thompson sold them through 96

someone else? Maybe Brooke wanted a piece of the action? Who knows? 97

Once I started stealing again, I couldn’t stop. It finally caught up with me 98

though. In 2002, I went back to prison where I spent the next five years. After I got out, I 99

went straight for good. I have lots of expertise in museum security, both from personal 100

experience and because I kept up my technical knowledge to help make the prison time 101

go faster. And, I definitely know the mind of an art thief and what might be attractive 102

for a heist. So now I act as a consultant for museums and law enforcement, telling them 103

how to keep guys/gals like me away from their stuff. I don’t really know why I never 104

anonymously tipped anyone off to the heist. Probably partially out of loyalty to the 105

Gates family. But mostly because I treat that period of my life like someone else’s 106

~ 52 ~

history. I know the tale like a well-worn book that I’ve read over and over again, but it 107

just doesn’t belong to me anymore. I think that’s how I could move on with my life. 108

But back to the original heist. To avoid any suspicion after the heist, Thompson 109

and I went our separate ways. We remained close, and met on the sly occasionally, but 110

never in public. To this day, I can’t believe that Claude/ia Hendricks never put two and 111

two together and connected the RonArt Heist to us. I’d say that makes the intrepid 112

Agent Hendricks not very good at her/his job. S/he couldn’t break Lou Howe? Really? 113

S/he couldn’t create a connection from the RonArt to Thompson Gates, who was 114

instrumental in bringing the exhibit to a small Iowa town, to one of Thompson Gates’ 115

college friends who was a known art thief? More than 20 years to figure that out and 116

s/he never made the connection. I was only questioned once and never charged with 117

anything. 118

And once again, Hendricks is getting the connection wrong. S/he has let Brooke 119

Poole snow him/her into thinking that Taylor is behind some grand plan. Come on, 120

man. Wasn’t it Agent Hendricks who once called Brooke Poole an accomplice in the 121

original crime? How can s/he keep getting this so wrong? And Poole her/himself is a 122

real clown. Big investigative reporter, right? How many empty Al Capone vaults does 123

s/he need to reveal before people recognize her/him for the incompetent fool s/he is? 124

After I left prison, I was trying to move on with my life and then in 2015, I found 125

myself pulled back into my past, Thompson Gates contacted me and told me that he 126

was sick; terminal cancer with only a few months to live. The years we spent together 127

quickly flooded my memory. He stepped away from his principal role at the 128

Foundation and Taylor took his place. I met with him and he told me he was planning 129

on putting the full story of the RonArt Heist in his will with instructions on how Taylor 130

could turn the paintings in. He promised to keep my name out of it. But I guess he died 131

before he could change his will. 132

~ 53 ~

After Thompson passed, I received a heart-breaking call from Taylor. S/he 133

seemed devastated and confused. S/he was cleaning out Thompson’s storage unit and 134

found the paintings. Taylor had so many questions! I didn’t want to be the one to tell 135

Taylor about the heist, but s/he would not relent and was on the verge of hysteria. 136

I couldn’t lie to the kid and I knew Thompson would want Taylor to know the 137

truth, so I told her/him about the Foundation’s cash issues and about the heist. S/he 138

could hardly believe what I was saying and asked me what to do with the art without 139

ruining the reputation of Thompson or the Gates family or the Foundation. S/he wanted 140

to know how much the art was worth and how to get rid of it without getting anyone in 141

trouble. I told Taylor that I still had contacts in the European market if s/he really 142

wanted to dispose of the art. 143

I told Taylor to hang tight and that I would get back with her/him after I figured 144

out how to work this all out. I had lots of contacts and channels I could move paintings 145

through. To get them back to the Boyd Museum, that is. Of course, I was tempted. 146

Knowing the paintings were within reach brought up the same old thrill, and I could 147

certainly have unloaded them. But my loyalty to Thompson was too strong. Selling 148

them would have put Taylor in a bad spot. I couldn’t ask her/him to be an accomplice to 149

a crime. Besides, I didn’t need the money. My current legitimate career is very lucrative. 150

Museums will pay a lot to protect valuable art. Anyway, the next thing I knew, Taylor 151

was working with Brooke. I knew that would go nowhere good and fast. I regret that I 152

didn’t offer Taylor the advice to stay away from that nincompoop. 153

Let’s recap, shall we? You have Brooke Poole, who has been involved with trying 154

to figure out this heist at any cost, no matter who got caught in the middle, and always 155

looking for any way to self-promote. You have Lou Howe who admits to being 156

involved from the beginning, but who is now embellishing her/his story to make it look 157

like s/he was a real genius. And you have Riley Chase who has known about these 158

missing paintings for at least 10 years and just now suddenly decides s/he has to do 159

~ 54 ~

something about getting them recovered? And finally, you have Agent Claude/ia 160

Hendricks who, channeling her/his inner Inspector Clousseau, hasn’t been able to solve 161

this case for 20 years. 162

What’s that add up to? You are charging the wrong person. Taylor never had any 163

suspicion in being involved with the stolen RonArt paintings and does not need to be 164

involved with perpetuating this situation any longer. S/he was trying to do the right 165

thing and get them returned to their rightful owner while at the same time trying to 166

protect the Foundation and her/his family’s honor.167

~ 55 ~

STATEMENT OF RILEY CHASE

My name is Riley Chase. By profession, I’m an historian of the arts. By trade, I 1

am an appraiser of the arts. An historian chronicles the journey of the arts and artists. 2

An appraiser assists the benefactors of the arts in their patronage of artists. An artist, of 3

course, is the conduit through which life and all of its emotions are expressed. As 4

Tolstoy wrote, art “is a means of union among men, joining them together in the same 5

feelings, and indispensable for the life and progress toward well-being of individuals 6

and of humanity.” 7

I was born and raised in Iowa, but my education has taken me to Paris, Prague, 8

Vienna, Florence, Milan – the palaces of Western Civilization’s expressions of art. My 9

formal education began with the Northern University High School, followed by an 10

undergraduate education in art history from Tabard University. I then left my home 11

state and ventured forth, taking a master’s degree from the Rhode Island School of 12

Design, followed by a PhD from Columbia. 13

While completing my PhD, I began a fellowship with the Florence Gould 14

Foundation. Upon completion of my fellowship I was retained as an associate specialist, 15

researching and writing about Foundation art that was loaned out to museums. I 16

provided historical context and interpretation of the art for the museums to use in their 17

exhibits. I cultivated valuable and rewarding relationships with museums – big and 18

small – all over the world. 19

In 2000, I was hired as an assistant director at the National Museum of Wildlife 20

Art in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. As an assistant director I managed exhibit curation and 21

played a special role in fundraising and relations. Although my skills clearly rest in 22

historical context and explication, my relationships with other museums and 23

foundations allowed me to perform the academic role and to leverage contacts to secure 24

art loans that a small museum like the MWA would not normally attract. 25

~ 56 ~

By 2004, word of my success spread and I was recruited by the renowned Ivan 26

Draagho banking family to become director of the Musee de Kluber-Lang in Geneva. It 27

appeared to be a dream come true. Geneva, the heart of the old world. The finest 28

collection of art in the world – from antiquities to post-modern and contemporary. Top 29

of the world. 30

And then came the World Jewish Restitution Organization’s report on the Swiss 31

banking industry’s complicity with the Nazis. The WJRO uncovered documents in 32

former East German archive proving conclusively that in 1944, Nazi SS chief and 33

German Interior Minister Heinrich Himmler sent a train loaded with hundreds of 34

millions of dollars worth of gold, jewelry and art objects to Switzerland for deposit in 35

the vaults of Swiss banks. Within a month those documents had been traced to the 36

Draahgo family and the galleries of the Musee de Kluber-Lang itself. 37

I was horrified and immediately resigned my position and returned home to 38

central Iowa. It’s difficult staying “clean” in the art world when you reach positions of 39

eminence such as I’ve held. You can’t investigate Nazism’s dark past without running 40

into some very shady characters who would either like to keep their family history 41

hidden or want to keep stolen works in their own private collections. When I 42

discovered I was actually working for such people, that was the last straw. I refused to 43

be associated with such a wretched hive of scum and villainy. 44

When I returned home to Iowa, I happily took a volunteer position with the 45

Boyd Museum of Art in Grinnell. I’ve also got my own gallery here in town. It’s small 46

and general, not specialized, but occasionally I get something unique and interesting. 47

Both positions are very rewarding. I’ve been fortunate to have such a beautiful journey 48

in the art world. I’ve been to the peak and I’ve been to the valley. I am at the peak here 49

in Grinnell. 50

Of course, I know all about the famous March 3, 1998 robbery of the RonArt 51

works from the Boyd. I’d been contacted repeatedly by law enforcement over the years 52

~ 57 ~

– Claude/ia Hendricks in particular – to discuss tips, monitor my contacts, and to 53

consult on identification of suspicious pieces. 54

On December 29 of 2018, a journalist named Brooke Poole emailed me about 55

reviewing some works s/he was tipped about that were suspected to be those of the 56

Artist Known as Ron. I’d known Brooke over the years as s/he researched the RonArt 57

thefts. S/he had some kind of obsession with the RonArt thefts and had been tracking 58

the case for years. Frankly, it seemed like an unhealthy relationship between 59

her/himself and Ron’s work. In the Summer of 2005, I spoke with Brooke and passed a 60

tip I’d received about a possible location of the missing pieces to her/him. Brooke said 61

that s/he’d gotten a tip about the heist from some antiques dealer. I don’t know what 62

became of it. I tried to find out but Brooke was oddly reluctant to fill me in. I’m not sure 63

if Brooke was trying to make a big splash in the news world or if Brooke just wanted the 64

RonArt works for her/himself. At any rate, I was immediately intrigued by the new tip 65

and made plans to meet with Brooke at my gallery the next day. That was December 30, 66

2018. 67

The next day when I met with Brooke at my gallery, Brooke said s/he had 68

“discovered” (her/his word) some of the stolen RonArt works, and that “if they are real 69

this could be the story of a lifetime.” Brooke was obviously very excited, but I was 70

skeptical this was just another symptom of an unhealthy obsession. I asked Brooke 71

where the paintings were, and how s/he came across them, but Brooke was very 72

evasive. S/he would not give me any details. Brooke said, “I need to know whether 73

these are real. I need to know what they’re worth.” I asked Brooke why the value 74

mattered, as I assumed that they were going straight back to the Boyd Museum. “I have 75

my reasons,” Brooke said. “You must know people who buy stolen art.” Well, I was 76

shocked at such a question, and never would have thought Brooke’s obsession would 77

go so far as to actually try to sell stolen art works. I told Brooke that the RonArt pieces 78

should be returned to the museum. I told Brooke that it was my understanding that 79

~ 58 ~

there was still a substantial reward, if money was a concern. Brooke asked, “How much 80

is the reward up to?” I told her/him, and s/he replied, “Can’t we get more money some 81

other way?” 82

I had no idea what s/he meant by “we.” I certainly hoped that s/he didn’t think 83

that I would have anything to do with her/his scheme. Although, since we were having 84

this conversation, apparently s/he did. At the same time, I realized that if Brooke really 85

had found the stolen RonArt paintings, then this would be a golden opportunity to 86

recover paintings that had been missing for more than 20 years. As much as it pained 87

me, I decided to play along. The most important thing for me was if these paintings 88

were indeed authentic that they not disappear once again into a collector’s private 89

stash, never to be seen in public again. I told Brooke that I would need to see the works 90

to verify their authenticity, and that I could ascertain the value myself. Brooke was very 91

hesitant to agree to this. “I’d really like to keep this as quiet as possible,” s/he said. 92

“Isn’t finding a buyer the best way to know what they’re worth?” I led Brooke on, and 93

said that my contacts would not be interested unless I could personally verify that I had 94

seen the works and that they were authentic. You don’t just call up underworld art 95

collectors and say you know someone who says s/he has original stolen RonArt works. 96

It took some convincing, but Brooke finally agreed to let me see them. Brooke told me to 97

meet her/him at 6 a.m. on January 5th at a storage shed in Montezuma of all places. I was 98

surprised that Brooke gave me so much detail about the location – after all, why should 99

s/he trust me? But I wasn’t about to object. Plus, I was pretty sure that this was all part 100

of Brooke’s plan to hype and heighten the story – you know remote location, early 101

morning, clandestine meeting – all so cloak and dagger… Tell me, why exactly is it 102

always late night/early morning at some crummy location. Why not a grand hotel room 103

with lunch provided at Noon? That seems so much more civilized. 104

Given Brooke’s bizarre relationship with the RonArt paintings, I did not trust 105

her/him at all. As soon as s/he departed, I contacted Iowa State Police Special Agent 106

~ 59 ~

Claude/ia Hendricks. I knew that Hendricks had been investigating the RonArt thefts 107

for years. I’ve been a background source for Hendricks’ investigation for years as well. 108

S/he’s become quite an effective law enforcement agent but really came from an art 109

background. Claude/ia has an impeccable art education so s/he doesn’t need my art 110

knowledge as much as you’d think – although we do often share our own thoughts on 111

art, artists, and the world of art. Sometimes it’s just nice to be able to bounce ideas off of 112

someone to get fresh perspectives on things. Claude/ia has talked with me quite a bit 113

over the years about people in the art world – museum people, as we say, and 114

academics, as well as patrons. The information that I’ve shared with her/him has led to 115

successful leads in a number of her/his investigations. 116

Special Agent Hendricks suggested setting up a sting operation where I would 117

meet with Brooke to discuss assisting her/him to find a buyer for the RonArt works. The 118

idea repulsed me initially. The thought that I would act as a fence to assist in such 119

cruelty violated my duty as a guardian of art. Soon, though, Agent Hendricks 120

convinced me that it was indeed the same duty that compelled me to play a role in the 121

operation – to join her/him in her/his journey to liberate the missing pieces and restore 122

the works to the fullness of their potential, as the artist intended. Hendricks said that it 123

was the only way to get the evidence necessary to charge Brooke with a crime. 124

On the morning I was to meet Brooke at the storage facility, I first met with 125

Hendricks and her/his other officers at the local Iowa State Police office. I wore a wire 126

so Agent Hendricks and her/his confederates would know when to step in and arrest 127

the evildoers. We agreed on a code phrase – “real deal” – that I should say once I was 128

satisfied that the works were in fact the stolen RonArt paintings. I then went to the 129

location Brooke had described about five minutes before 6 a.m. 130

Brooke arrived and led me into the storage unit – number 245, I believe it was. 131

Before s/he opened it, s/he said to me, “Look Riley, I have to know I can trust you to 132

keep quiet. My career, my life, are on the line here. You have to keep this between us.” I 133

~ 60 ~

assured Brooke that I would be discreet. At that point Brooke pulled the key out if 134

her/his pocket, unlocked a padlock, and opened the unit. I was a little surprised by the 135

condition of the unit. Given all of the subterfuge and film noir vibe about the whole 136

meet, I guess I expected a pristine unit with the paintings on easels spotlighted for 137

maximum effect. Instead, it was an actual storage shed filled with shelving units, file 138

cabinets, sound equipment, travel gear, and a whole lot of miscellaneous junk. I confess, 139

I felt a little let down and prepared myself for disappointment. Then Brooke pulled a 140

sheet off of some items on a shelf and stepped back. I was appalled that, real or not, 141

anyone would be so careless with art. Brooke, or whoever put them there, did not 142

appear to realize what they could be. 143

I inspected the pieces and immediately knew that they were obviously the stolen 144

RonArt works. There was no mistaking the sensitivity that the Artist Known as Ron 145

expressed in his paintings. They instantly revealed their authenticity. Meanwhile, 146

Brooke wouldn’t stop talking about Ron. S/he knew everything there was to know 147

about Ron’s work – materials, style, influences, technique. Brooke kept rambling about 148

Ron’s childhood in Deep River. S/he talked about Ron’s family members as if they were 149

friends. S/he talked about Ron’s mother and what it must have been like to raise such a 150

gifted child with six other children to care for as well. Let me remind you, I am an 151

internationally recognized art expert. I thought Brooke was pedantic. At first I thought 152

Brooke was testing me, but then I realized it was nearly pathological. 153

Now to fully authenticate a work of art can take hours, if not days, or 154

painstaking analysis of close details, using sophisticated equipment. But I had all I 155

needed and was tiring of the constant babble from Brooke, so I told her/him that these 156

were the “real deal.” And then it all came to an end. The police streamed in. The 157

authorities liberated RonArt’s long concealed works. Brooke was arrested. All in a 158

torrent, my senses rejoined my physical person and I was emotionally spent. 159

~ 61 ~

I don’t know why Taylor Gates is now being charged with a crime. My only 160

contact about the RonArt paintings was Brooke Poole. I never had any communication 161

with Taylor, and had no idea that s/he was involved. However, I know Claude/ia 162

Hendricks well enough to know that s/he always gets her/his man, so to speak. I don’t 163

know how Taylor Gates is involved, but I trust that Hendricks knows what s/he’s 164

doing. I’m just glad that the works are back at the museum where they belong. 165

Yes, I am aware that my reputation is not above reproach but rest assured that all 166

alleged transgressions are completely innocent. Although I did indeed work with the 167

Gould Foundation and the Musee de Luber-Lang, I obviously had nothing to do with 168

art stolen by the Nazis nor with the Swiss banking industry’s complicity. 169

All of that happened decades before and I had no knowledge of the ties. It is also 170

true that I was reprimanded by Columbia University for allegedly plagiarized work in 171

my dissertation. That was all unintentional and a misunderstanding. I admit that I may 172

not have followed the traditional rules of attribution, but any conclusion otherwise is 173

libelous.174

~ 62 ~

EXHIBITS

~ 63 ~

EXHIBIT 1 Ron Art Stolen from Boyd Museum of Art By: Brooke Poole, Grinnell Herald Register March 4, 1998 GRINNELL – In what was described as the biggest art theft in Iowa history, two people posing as police officers gained entry to the Boyd Museum of Art in Grinnell early yesterday, restrained a security guard, and left with an estimated $300,000 worth of art, police say. The stolen works were all paintings by the famous Artist Known as Ron. In a daring, middle-of-the-night robbery, police said, the people knocked on a side door of the museum at about 1:15 a.m. and told the security guard there was a disturbance in the area and were allowed to enter. Police officials said the thieves then overpowered the guard, tied him/her with tape and spent about an hour in the museum, stealing six art objects. The stolen items include Many Rivers to Cross, Stir It Up, Red Red Wine, Cherry Oh Baby, Three Little Birds, and One Love. Grinnell Police were called to the scene shortly after a maintenance worker discovered the guard at about 6:15 a.m. Local police contacted the Iowa State Police, which has art experts on staff. Claude/ia Hendricks, the ISP agent in charge of the investigation, said s/he could not reveal details about the robbery, including how the security system, including alarms and cameras, was foiled. “We will be looking at what system was in place, how it operated, if it was bypassed and how it had been bypassed,” Hendricks said. S/he also said that while investigators believe there were two thieves involved, “there might well be more.” The guard was questioned extensively. Law enforcement sources said investigators are trying to learn whether the robbery was staged in order to

ransom back the heavily insured objects, or to sell them to a private collector. Said Hendricks, “This is one of those thefts where people actually spent some time researching and took specific things. The robbery was clearly a professional job.” Hendricks would not identify the name or age of the guard but said the museum hires and trains its own security staff. A police source said investigators believe the crime was the most lucrative ever in Idaho. The exhibit of Ron Art was the most comprehensive ever for the reclusive Iowa artist. It has been open for less than a week. “These are some of Ron’s masterpieces,” Boyd Museum of Art spokesperson Kristen Shaffer said. “It’s a very sad feeling. Ron was a true national treasure. We were honored that his family chose our museum for this exhibit. Anyone with information needs to come forward so that we can get these RonArt treasures back for the public to enjoy.” Although Hendricks would not say how the works were taken, law enforcement sources said they appeared to have been cut out of their frames. Agent Hendricks said, “What is very, very important right now is to let the public know what articles were taken from the museum in the event they can be recovered at a later date, or anybody having information at all about the robbery or the art treasures, where they might be, or if an attempt is being made to sell them or pass them on, to get in touch with the Iowa State Police or the Grinnell Police Department as soon as possible.” S/he added, “we will be following every lead to get these art treasures back and solve this robbery.”

~ 64 ~

EXHIBIT 2 RonArt Heist Revisited: 15 Years of Theories By: Brooke Poole, Special to The Des Moines Tribune March 3, 2013 DES MOINES – The hallway in the Altoona warehouse was dark, the space cramped. But soon there was a flashlight beam, and I was staring at one of the most sought after stolen art pieces in the United States: the Artist Known as Ron’s Stir It Up. Or was I? My tour guide that night in August 2005 was a rogue antiques dealer. I was a reporter at the Grinnell Herald Register, consumed like many people before me and since with finding any of the RonArt paintings stolen in March 1998 from the Boyd Museum of Art in Grinnell. The theft was big news then and remains so today as it nears its 15th anniversary. The stolen works are valued at roughly $250,000 to $300,000, making the robbery the largest art theft in Iowa history. Which explains why I found myself in Altoona, 50 miles away from the scene of the crime, tracking yet another lead. My guide had phoned me suggesting s/he knew something of the robbery, and s/he had some street credibility because s/he was allied with a known thief. S/he took me into a storage locker and flashed her/his light on the painting and abruptly ushered me out. The entire visit had taken all of two minutes. Call me obsessed – I’ve been called worse in this matter, including a “criminal accomplice” by a noted art investigator – but I felt certain I was feet from the real thing, that the Ron Art painting, and perhaps all the stolen art, would soon be home. I wrote a front-page article about the furtive unveiling for The Tribune – with a headline that bellowed “We’ve Seen It!” – and stood by for the happy ending. It never came. Officials did not dismiss my “viewing” out of hand, but the agents in charge back then portrayed me as a dupe. Eight years later, I still wonder whether what I saw that night was a work of

art or an effort to con an eager reporter. The Iowa State Police continue to discount my warehouse viewing. (They say that have figured out the identity of my guide, but I promised the guide anonymity.) Such have been the vicissitudes in my coverage of the case for nearly two decades, during which I have gathered hundreds of investigative documents and photos, interviewed scores of criminals and crackpots, and met with dozens of law enforcements officials and museum executives. Anyone who expected the art to appear rapidly on the black market or to be used for some kind of ransom was disappointed. Instead there was dead silence. Seven years after the heist, the museum and private interests raised the reward from $50,000 to $100,000. Early on investigators focused on Sal Amore, a career thief. Information from Amore ultimately led to my dark trip through that Altoona warehouse. Investigators have privately told me they believed there had been a second sighting of one of the stolen items, though I’m sad to say it was not the picture I encountered in the warehouse. A tipster, they said, told them in 2009 that he had seen a work resembling Stir It Up in Dinkla, North Dakota. “At first the stolen art was seen as too hot, and there were no takers,” Agent Claude/ia Hendricks, the art expert with the Iowa State Patrol, once told me. But what happens now? The investigators will keep looking. Hendricks has rejected the notion that the art was destroyed by thieves as soon as they realized what they had. Hendricks claimed: “That rarely happens in art thefts. Most criminals are savvy enough to know such valuable paintings are their ace in the hole.”

~ 65 ~

EXHIBIT 3 The following list of paintings was verified by Riley Chase in February 2019 in the course of her/his business as an art appraiser.

Painting Estimated Value as of February 2019 Many Rivers to Cross

$25,000

Stir It Up

$35,000

Red Red Wine

$40,000

Cherry Oh Baby

$25,000

Three Little Birds

$100,000

One Love

$50,000

~ 66 ~

EXHIBIT 4

COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK

September 14, 1988

Riley Chase 6214 West 62nd Street Apartment 2140 New York, New York 10036 Re: Disciplinary Action 87-0014 Riley Chase: I am writing to inform you that the Office of Academic Integrity and Responsible Conduct of Research has found in the above-referenced matter that you have violated Columbia University’s plagiarism policy, Columbia Code of Conduct sect 5-110, in three sections of your dissertation introduction which was submitted during the Spring semester of 1987. As you know, this is an extremely serious violation that often results in revocation of your doctoral degree. In this instance, though, the Office of Academic Integrity and Responsible Conduct of Research has decided not to impose discipline because the investigation did not reveal intentional misconduct. Regardless, a finding that you have violated the University’s plagiarism policy is required because it was conclusively established that you unintentionally misappropriated the intellectual property of another and submitted as your own original work. While your violation may have been coincidental, the University maintains the highest standards of academic integrity. The Office of Academic Integrity and Responsible Conduct of Research appreciates your cooperation in this investigation. Sincerely,

J. Schnurr Jerry Schnurr Administrative Dean and Director of the Office of Academic Integrity and Responsible Conduct of Research

~ 67 ~

EXHIBIT 5 SAL AMORE

Curriculum Vitae

Sal Amore, born on July 4, 1954, Manhattan, New York

Education: University of Denver – B.A. in Art History; Masters in International Business

Member: Met Board Member – New York

Museum of Fine Arts Board Member – Boston

Employment History: Nadipuram International – Chicago, Illinois – International Business Manager

Gates Foundation – Grinnell, Iowa – Shipping Manager and Consultant

Self-Employed – Art Consultation Services, Museum Security Consultant

Notable Cases: As an Art Consultant, I have worked for a variety of museums providing detailed security schematics and advising on security risks and weak points. I have also been engaged by local and national police and investigatory agencies to consult on high-end art heists. Notably, and during the last 10 years, I served as an expert on the following cases:

U.S. v Brem – Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC – robbery of Dorothy’s ruby slippers (Defense)

State v Mahoney – the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY – Burglary of “Adam and Eve” – a well-known engraving by Albrecht Durer (Prosecution)

State v Leek – The Frick Collection, New York, NY – Burglary of La Promenade, Renoir (Defense) State v Merk – San Francisco Museum of Modern Art – Burglary of La Conversation, Henri Matisse (Defense)

State v. Watson – Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Massachusetts – Burglary of Paul Revere by John Singleton Copley (Prosecution)

Published Articles: Behind the Wires, published in D’Orsay Digest, 2014

To Catch a Thief, published in the Manhattan Met, 2013

Of Thieves and Men, published in Museum Monthly, 2012

My Crime, My Time: Confessions of an Artist as a Young Thief, published in Vanity Fair, 2012

~ 68 ~

EXHIBIT 6

INCIDENT REPORT

Submitted by: Special Agent Claude/ia Hendricks Date: 1/6/2019 Case: 19-1-6-A On December 30, 2018 at 1340 hours I, Iowa State Police Special Agent Claude/ia Hendricks, received a telephone call from Riley Chase. Chase is known to me to be an art appraiser and art dealer. Chase told me that earlier that day s/he had received a personal contact from Brooke Poole. Poole is also known to me as a newspaper reporter for the Des Moines Tribune. According to Chase, Poole wanted Chase to identify and authenticate artwork that Poole had reason to believe was produced by the Artist Known as Ron (deceased), and that had been stolen from the Boyd Museum of Art in Grinnell on March 3, 1998.

According to Chase, Poole said s/he had found what s/he believed to be stolen RonArt works, and that Poole wanted to write a story about them. Chase said that Poole wanted Chase to authenticate the works and give an estimate of their value. Chase said s/he told Poole the works should be returned to the museum, and that there was a reward for their recovery. Chase said that Poole was reluctant to return the paintings to the museum, and instead asked Chase if s/he would help Poole sell the works on the black market.

Chase said Poole was insistent on pursuing an illegal sale, so Chase decided to “play along” in an effort to locate the works. Chase said that Poole agreed to meet Chase at a storage unit in Montezuma, Iowa at 6:00 a.m. on January 5, 2019. Chase understood from Poole that the artwork was located in the storage unit. Chase said that’s/he contacted me immediately after Poole left her/his gallery.

After my conversation with Chase, I assembled a team to set up a covert operation. Since the meeting was to take place on January 5 at 0600 hours, our plan was to be on scene and in position by 0400 hours. I contacted Chase and asked her/him to be at the local ISP office at 0500 hours so that s/he could be set up with a wire.

On January 5, 2019 the covert team took positions around the storage unit where we could remain concealed but keep the storage unit in view. At approximately 0500 on January 5th a vehicle drove slowly past the main entrance to the storage units and parked approximately 100 yards away. This was outside the perimeter established by the covert team, but officers were able to see Poole exit the passenger side of the vehicle and walk to the main entrance of the storage units. Poole arrived at the main entrance at 0555. Chase arrived at 0557. Chase was wearing a wireless transmitter, and the entire conversation between Poole and Chase was recorded and transcribed.

Poole and Chase proceeded to a storage unit, which Poole unlocked with a key s/he removed from her/his left front pants pocket. Both Poole and Chase went inside the storage unit. While officers could see Poole and Chase at all times while they were outside of the unit, we lost sight of them for approximately three minutes while they were inside the unit. While they were inside the unit Poole talked constantly about the Artist Ron and his artwork. The covert team had given Chase a code phrase –

~ 69 ~

“real deal” – that s/he was to say after s/he had examined the art and determined they were authentic, and they were pieces stolen from the Boy Museum on March 3, 1998. At 0605 I heard Chase give the code phrase – “real deal.” At that point I gave the officers on the covert team the signal to move in.

As we did so, the car that Poole arrived in quickly pulled away and left the scene. Since the car was outside the perimeter and our immediate concern was apprehending Poole and retrieving the paintings, I instructed officers not to pursue the vehicle.

When I arrived at the storage unit, I placed Poole under arrest for possession of stolen property and advised her/him of her/his rights. I searched Poole incident to the arrest and recovered a key that fits the padlock to the storage unit, and Poole’s wallet containing Poole’s driver’s license and Riley Chase’s business card. Poole did not have any car keys.

I searched the storage unit and recovered two works of RonArt that Kennedy indicated. Also, in the shed were several items of sound equipment with “Parkington Lane” written on them in black marker. Parkington Lane is a nightclub owned by Lou Howe. The sound equipment was covered with a thick layer of dust. I observed several pieces of luggage with the name “Taylor Gates” on them. These were clean and did not appear to have been in the storage shed very long. Finally, there were several old books and filing cabinets full of business records, all with Thompson Gate’s name on them.

I asked Poole is s/he was willing to waive her/his rights and answer questions. Poole was cooperative and said that s/he had asked Chase to authenticate the artworks for that Poole could be instrumental in recovering the paintings and write a story on the RonArt theft. Poole said the storage belonged to Taylor Gates. Gates is well known as the child of Thompson Gates, a wealthy businessman, philanthropist and art collector who died in October 2018. According to Poole, Gates said s/he discovered the artwork while inventorying her/his father’s estate. Poole said Gates contacted her/him and asked for Poole’s assistance in “getting rid” of the RonArt works in a way that would not implicate the Gates family, Poole said it was Gate’s idea to sell the works on the black market, and that Poole was only going to play along long enough to make the story good enough for a Pulitzer prize. Poole said her/his intent had been to contact me at some point in the future to recover the paintings for the museum. Poole identified Gates as the driver of the car that brought Poole to the storage unit and that drove off when the police moved in.

After clearing the scene and transporting Poole to jail I made contact with Taylor Gates at her/his residence. I advised Gates that s/he was not under arrest, and that I wanted to talk to her/him about her/his involvement with Poole and the stolen RonArt works. Gates admitted to knowing that the works were in the storage unit, and that as executor of Thompson Gate’s estate s/he took possession of them. Gates claimed that s/he wanted to return the paintings without anyone knowing that her/his father had arranged to have them stolen back in 1998. Prior to this I had not known that Thompson Gates was involved in the earlier theft. Gates said that s/he was unaware of Poole’s plan to sell the paintings on the black market. I asked Gates why s/he sped off when Poole was arrested if Gates was innocent? I asked Gates why s/he didn’t stay and explain? At that point Gates said s/he had nothing left to say. I placed Gates under arrest for possession of stolen property and transported her/him to jail.

~ 70 ~

EXHIBIT 7

STORAGE SPACE RENTAL AGREEMENT Landlord:____Montezuma Rents_____________ Tenant: ___Lou Howe_____________________ Description of space leased: ___________245_____________________________________________ IN CONSIDERATION of the mutual covenants and agreements herein contained, Landlord hereby leases to Tenant and Tenant hereby leases from Landlord the above described property under the following terms and conditions:

1) TERM. This lease shall commence on ___9-4__, 19_99_and continue until terminated as provided herein.

2) RENT. The rent shall be $ _20__ per month payable on or before the __15_ day of each month. In the event the rent is received more than __5_ days late, a late fee of $ _5__ shall be due. In the event a check bounces, a fee of $ __30___ shall be due.

3) DEFAULT. In the event Tenant fails to pay the rent due under this Agreement, Landlord may deny access

until pd in full and whenever the rent is more than 30 days in arrears, Landlord may remove any property in the storage space and relet it to a new tenant..

4) LIEN. Landlord shall have a lien on property placed in the storage space and shall have the right to sell the

property at public or private sale or as provided by law.

5) USE. Tenant shall not keep in the storage space any explosive, inflammable, hazardous or illegal substances or any animals or pets. Tenant shall not assign or sublet the storage space. Tenant shall abide by the rules and regulations of Landlord which are attached hereto. Landlord shall have the right to enter the storage space for inspection or repairs. Tenant shall make no alterations to the storage space without the written consent of Landlord.

6) LIABILITY. This Agreement is made on the express condition that, while Landlord shall exercise

reasonable care in the operation of the premises, Landlord shall not be liable for any loss or damage to Tenant.

7) CASUALTY. In the event the premises are damaged by fire or other casualty, and are rendered

untenantable, either party may cancel this Agreement.

8) SECURITY DEPOSIT. Tenant shall deposit with Landlord the sum of $ _50__ to be returned upon the termination of this Agreement provided Tenant is not in default hereof.

9) TERMINATION. This agreement may be terminated by either party upon the giving of written notice at

least 30 days prior to the end of any rental month. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties have executed this lease the _4_ day of __Sept___, 19 _99__. LANDLORD: TENANT: ______Torey Cuellar_____________ _________LOU Howe_______________

~ 71 ~

EXHIBIT 8

IN THE IOWA DISTRICT COURT FOR POWESHIEK COUNTY STATE OF IOWA, ) ) Plaintiff, ) CASE NO. MT-2020- 121719 ) Vs. ) ) PLEA AGREEMENT BROOKE POOLE, ) ) Defendant. ) ) ______________________________) COME NOW the Poweshiek County Attorney’s Office and, in the name and by the authority of the State of Iowa, and Brooke Poole, individually and by and through her/his attorney and do hereby agree as follows: Poole is charged with the crime of THEFT IN THE FIRST DEGREE (Property Exceeding $10,000) in violation of Iowa Code Chapter 714, a Class C felony, as follows: That the defendant, Brooke Poole, on or between December 18, 2018 and January 5, 2019 did wrongfully take, obtain, or withhold property with the intent to deprive the owner of the property, and/or appropriate the property to her/himself or a third person, to wit: the defendant retained, concealed, obtained control over, or possessed two (2) paintings by the Artist Known as Ron which the defendant knew had been stolen, or should have reasonably believed had been stolen from The Boyd Museum of Art in Grinnell, which property had a value in excess of $10,000 with the intent to deprive the owner of the property and/or to appropriate the property to her/himself or a third person, while within the County of Poweshiek, State of Iowa, in violation of Iowa Code Chapter 714. The State of Iowa has offered, and Poole has accepted, a plea agreement on the following terms and conditions:

A. Poole shall enter a guilty plea to the felony offense of theft as set forth above:

B. The court shall set a sentencing for a time and date after completion of the trial in the State of Iowa v. Taylor Gates, Case No. MT-2020-121819;

C. Poole shall cooperate in the investigation of Taylor Gates, and shall testify truthfully at said

trial;

~ 72 ~

D. If Poole fulfills the obligations described in paragraph C above, which shall be determined at the sole discretion of the prosecuting attorney, then the State of Iowa agrees as follows:

1. Poole may withdraw her/his guilty plea to the felony offense of theft; 2. The State of Iowa shall amend the charge to misdemeanor theft; 3. Poole shall enter a guilty plea to the misdemeanor charge; 4. The State of Iowa shall recommend a sentence which includes suspended jail

time, a period or probation, and a fine; the amount of suspended jail time, the period of probation, and the amount of the fine may be argued by the parties and shall be determined by the court;

5. If at any time Poole shall produce any written or motion picture account of her/his involvement with the theft of the RonArt works, s/he agrees to donate 50% of the proceeds of the sale of such account to the Boyd Museum.

E. If Poole fails to fulfill the obligations described in paragraph C, then the State of Iowa and

Poole shall proceed to the sentencing on the felony count with no agreement on what appropriate sentence shall be.

The State of Iowa and Poole agree and understand that the court is not a party to this plea agreement and is not bound hereto. This is the complete agreement between the parties. Entered into this 1st day of February 2019.

_Michael Fica________________ __BROOKE POOLE____________ Poweshiek County Prosecuting Attorney BROOKE POOLE, Defendant