A former pawn shop owner from Los Angeles has been charged with a serious crime involving stolen artwork by Andy Warhol. Glenn Steven Bednarsh, 58, is accused of knowingly purchasing a stolen trial proof print of Soviet leader Vladimir Lenin for $6,000 in February 2021. This piece is quite valuable, estimated to be worth around $175,000.
Bednarsh, who now lives in Farmington, Michigan, is facing two federal charges: conspiracy and interstate transportation of stolen goods. He allegedly tried to sell the stolen print through a Dallas auction house. To facilitate the sale, he enlisted the help of Brian Alec Light, 58, from Hudson, Ohio, who used to live in Los Angeles. Light contacted the auction house in March 2021, and Bednarsh transported the artwork to the auction house’s Beverly Hills office before it was shipped to Dallas.
The scheme unraveled when an employee at the Dallas auction house sought the opinion of a West Hollywood art gallery regarding the print. The gallery recognized it as stolen and promptly reported it to the auction house and the FBI.
Light reportedly misled FBI agents during their investigation. When questioned about the artwork, he claimed he bought it at a garage sale for $18,000, providing a fake receipt to support his story. Bednarsh also lied to investigators, claiming he was only storing the artwork for Light and had no intention of profiting from it.
The artwork was stolen from a home in Los Angeles County in early 2021, not by Bednarsh or Light, but by an unknown thief. Shortly after the theft, the thief brought the artwork to Bednarsh’s pawn shop, where he purchased it.
Light pleaded guilty to one count of interstate transportation of stolen goods in November 2024, and he faces up to 10 years in prison. His sentencing is scheduled for May 27. Meanwhile, Bednarsh is expected to be arraigned in the coming weeks in a Los Angeles federal court.
This incident is part of a larger issue of art thefts involving Warhol’s works. Several of his pieces have been stolen over the years, including a high-profile theft of a multimillion-dollar collection in 2009 and a recent theft of a print titled "Mao" from Orange Coast College in March 2024. The art world continues to grapple with the challenges of stolen artwork and the complexities of ownership in the realm of high-value art.