| Revision as of 16:08, 9 March 2010 editHans Adler (talk | contribs)Autopatrolled, Extended confirmed users, Pending changes reviewers, Rollbackers26,943 edits make clear that DEA is American← Previous edit | Revision as of 08:22, 10 March 2010 edit undoHans Adler (talk | contribs)Autopatrolled, Extended confirmed users, Pending changes reviewers, Rollbackers26,943 edits cutting down the conspiracy stuff, more details on the scam itselfNext edit → | ||
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| The '''art student scam''' is a ] in which young people pretend to be art students and try to sell overpriced artwork claimed to be of their own production. | |||
| The '''art student scam''' is a ] in which young people pretend to be art students and try to sell overpriced artwork claimed to be of their own production. The scam is widespread in China.<ref>Frommer's China, Wiley, ISBN 978-0-470-52658-3, p. 140. </ref> In 2001 a variant of the scam in which young Israelis posing as art students were selling art door-to-door hit numerous facilities and private homes of staff members of the American ] (DEA); the pattern was noticed and initially an espionage program was suspected. Many of the Israelis were deported for immigration offenses.<ref name=Guardian>{{Cite web|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2002/mar/06/internationaleducationnews.highereducation|title=Israeli student 'spy ring' revealed|publisher=]|date=March 6, 2002|accessdate=2010-03-06}}</ref> An internal DEA warning was leaked in 2002 in the aftermath of the ],<ref name=Insight/> giving rise to a conspiracy theory.<ref name="Haaretz"/> Similar scams, again involving ostensible Israeli art students, have since been reported in Canada<ref name="Canada"/> and other English-speaking countries.<ref name="Australia"/><ref name=NZ /> | |||
| In a Chinese version of the scam, young Chinese people approach tourists at popular attractions such as ].<ref>"The famous art show ripoff in Tiananmen Square was recently cleaned up for the Olympics. This was a pretty funny one, where English-speaking 'art students' would strike up conversation with overseas visitors and tell them they happen to be in town for an art show across the street. | |||
| == The scam == | |||
| The show was closing today when I first heard the spiel in 2006, it was closing today when I returned to Beijing in 2007, but the pre-Olympics cleanup really seems to have closed the collection of knockoff art." . See also .</ref> The scammer speaks English well enough to get into a conversation with the foreigner. The scammer claims to be an art student whose works are on display at a nearby exhibition which is part of the scam and sells mass-produced art reproductions at exorbitant prices. There are warnings about this scam in tourist guides.<ref name="ZH">Frommer's China, Wiley, ISBN 978-0-470-52658-3, p. 140. "You should also be leery of any English-speaking youngsters who claim to be ''art students'' and offer to take you to a special exhibit of their work. The art, which you will be pressured to buy, almost always consists of assembly-line reproductions of famous (or not-so-famous) paintings offered at prices several dozen times higher than their actual value."</ref> | |||
| A variant of this scam has been reported in various English-speaking countries since 2001.<ref name="Canada">{{cite news |url=http://www.calgarysun.com/news/alberta/2009/08/19/10523156.html |title="Israeli art scam" preying on people's kindness |publisher=] |date=2009-08-19 |first=Renato |last=Gandia}}</ref><ref name="Australia">{{cite news |url=http://www.bordermail.com.au/news/local/news/general/oil-painting-scam-hits-the-border/1494344.aspx |title=Oil painting scam hits the Border |publisher=] |date=2009-04-22}}</ref><ref name=NZ>{{cite news|publisher=]|date=2004-02-04|last=Dye|first=Stuart|title=Brush with law reveals art scam}}<br>{{cite news |publisher=] |date=2006-01-18 |first=Narelle |last=Coulter |url=http://www.starnewsgroup.com.au/story/8437 |title=Door slammed on ‘original’ art scam}}<br>{{cite news|publisher=]|date=2010-01-19|first=Belinda|last=Feek|url=http://findarticles.com/p/news-articles/waikato-times/mi_8054/is_20100119/warnings-art-scam/ai_n48688542/?tag=content;col1|title=Warnings out over art scam}}</ref> | |||
| Here, the art is sold door-to-door, approaching the marks in their homes without the need for sham exhibition sites or art stores. | |||
| The scam was operated by Israelis in the United States beginning in summer 2000 or earlier.<ref name="Seattle">{{cite news |url=http://www.komonews.com/news/archive/4007381.html |title=Information On An Israeli Art Scam |publisher=] |date=2006-08-30}}</ref> After it hit numerous facilities and private homes of staff members of the ] (DEA), a DEA officer noticed the pattern and suspected an espionage program. The Israelis' mandatory military service contributed to the initial confusion, but ultimately they were deported for immigration offenses only.<ref name=Guardian>{{Cite web|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2002/mar/06/internationaleducationnews.highereducation|title=Israeli student 'spy ring' revealed|publisher=]|date=March 6, 2002|accessdate=2010-03-06}}</ref> An internal DEA, leaked in 2002 in the aftermath of the ], gave rise to an urban myth that shaped much of the reporting about the scam,<ref name="Haaretz">{{cite news |url=http://www.haaretz.co.il/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=162902&contrassID=2&subContrassID=5&sbSubContrassID=0&listSrc=Y&itemNo=162902 |title=Spies, or students? Were the Israelis just trying to sell their paintings, or agents in a massive espionage ring? |first=Nathan |last=Guttman |date=2002-05-07 |publisher=]}}</ref><ref name=Seattle1>{{cite news |url=http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/archive/?date=20020307&slug=notspies07 |title=U.S. officials dismiss report of Israeli spies |last=Mintz |first=John |coauthors=Dan Eggen |date=March 7, 2002 |work=Seattle Times |accessdate=October 18, 2008}}</ref><ref name="Forward">{{cite news |url=http://www.forward.com/articles/5250/ |title=Espionage Ruled Out in Case of Bad Art |publisher=] |first=Seamus |last=McGraw}}</ref> | |||
| The scam has been reported in ],<ref name="Canada"/> ],<ref name="Australia"/> ],<ref name=NZ>{{cite news|publisher=]|date=2004-02-04|last=Dye|first=Stuart|title=Brush with law reveals art scam}}<br>{{cite news |publisher=] |date=2006-01-18 |first=Narelle |last=Coulter |url=http://www.starnewsgroup.com.au/story/8437 |title=Door slammed on ‘original’ art scam}}<br>{{cite news|publisher=]|date=2010-01-19|first=Belinda|last=Feek|url=http://findarticles.com/p/news-articles/waikato-times/mi_8054/is_20100119/warnings-art-scam/ai_n48688542/?tag=content;col1|title=Warnings out over art scam}}</ref> and the ].<ref name="Seattle"/> | |||
| such as the idea that Israeli agents had been tracking the terrorists before the attacks.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.zeit.de/2002/41/Tuer_an_Tuer_mit_Mohammed_Atta|title=Tür an Tür mit Mohammed Atta|date=October 2002|year=2002|publisher=]}}</ref> | |||
| In any event the ongoing operation of the scam makes no sense as a spying program.<ref name="Forward" /> | |||
| In Australia, the ] have released a warning about the scheme.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nt.gov.au/pfes/index.cfm?fuseaction=viewMediaRelease&pID=5664&y=2006&mo=11 |date=2006-11-22 |publisher=] |title=Police warn against art scam }}</ref> | |||
| == 2001–2002 Israeli art student spying scandal == | |||
| During the 2001–2002 period in the United States there were official reports of hundreds of young Israelis posing as art students spying on federal buildings and employees. | |||
| The first public report regarding a mass arrest of Israeli art students on suspicion of espionage aired on ] on December 12, 2001. It stated that around 60 Israelis, arrested for immigration violations, were also suspected of spying against the United States.<ref name="Haaretz"/> | |||
| The story was headline news in Europe, the ] and Israel, but it was largely ignored by other media outlets in the United States.<ref name=Tampa/> Carl Cameron, the author of the report, explained the lack of US media interest by pointing to its shortcomings, including the lack of on the record interviews and supporting documentation. He also said that just as federal agents were afraid to criticize Israel, as it was considered "career suicide", the same was true for journalists.<ref name=Tampa/> Others at Fox News said the report resulted in intense pressure on the network from pro-Israeli lobbying groups, such as the ] and the ] (CAMERA).<ref name=Tampa/> Fox removed the story from its Web site, only reposting it March 2002 after other media began showing interest.<ref name=Tampa/> | |||
| In January 2001, reports from ] (DEA) field offices around the country wer being compiled which stated that "art students" had been attempting to penetrate DEA offices for over a year, as well as the offices of other law enforcement and Department of Defence agencies. They had also visited the homes of many DEA officers and senior federal officials attempting to sell art. Agents approached observed that when the "art students" departed their homes, they did not approach those of their neighbours. By this time, DEA agents reported 130 incidents involving "art students"; some "art students" were caught diagramming the architecture of federal buildings and some were found to have photographed federal officials. <ref name="Salon">{{cite news |url=http://mobile.salon.com/news/feature/2002/05/07/students/index.html |title=The Israeli "art student" mystery |first=Christopher |last= Ketcham |date=2002-05-07 |publisher=]}}</ref> According to ''Insight on the News'', "Unauthorized photographing of military sites and civilian industrial complexes, such as petroleum-storage facilities, also was reported to the DEA, the documents show and interviews confirm."<ref name=Insight/> | |||
| DEA reports confirm that the visits of these "art students" to the homes of federal employees of various law enforcement agencies began as early as January 2000 and continued until at least June 2001.<ref name=Insight>{{cite web|url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1571/is_12_18/ai_84396672/|title=Intelligence agents or art students? The DEA and Justice Department believe there was something sinister behind unusual visits Israeli 'art students' paid to employees of law-enforcement agencies|date=April 1, 2002|accessdate=2010-03-05|publisher=Insight on the News|author=Paul M. Rodriguez}}</ref> One DEA report, "Suspicious Activities Involving Israeli Art Students at DEA Facilities," lists more than 180 documented incidents involving these "art students".<ref name=Insight/> The DEA's IS unit found "Israeli art students" had also gained unauthorized access to several military bases, including two bases from which ] and "other supersecret military units operate."<ref name=Insight/> | |||
| According to ], in 2002 FBI officials claimed that the "art students" were "running a major eavesdropping operation that had penetrated into the highest echelons of the US administration".<ref>{{cite news |url=http://web.archive.org/web/20020321021731/http://real-info.1accesshost.com/janes1.html |title=Allies and Espionage |date=2002-03-15 |publisher=]}}</ref> Commenting on the lack of US media coverage, the report said, "It is rather strange that the U.S. media with one notable exception seem to be ignoring what may well prove to be the most explosive story since the 11 September attack, the alleged breakup of a major Israeli espionage operation in the United States which aimed to infiltrate both the Justice and Defense departments and which may also have been tracking al-Qaida terrorists before the aircraft hijackings took place."<ref name=Tampa>{{cite web|url=http://tampa.creativeloafing.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A1514|title=The Spies Who Came in From the Art Sale|author=John F. Sugg|publisher=Creative Loafing (originally published in Tampa Bay's ]|date=March 20, 2002|accessdate=2010-03-06}}</ref> A federal law-enforcement source told ''Insight on the News'' that, "The higher-ups don't want to deal with this and neither does the FBI because it involves Israel."<ref name=Insight/> | |||
| === Office of the National Counterintelligence Executive warning === | |||
| In March 2001, the US ] (NCIX) issued a warning about people identifying themselves as "Israeli art students" attempting to bypass security and gain entry to federal buildings, and even to the private residences of senior federal officials under the guise of selling art.<ref name="NCIX">{{cite web |url=http://web.archive.org/web/20070124104741/http://www.ncix.gov/archives/nacic/news/2001/mar01.html |title=Office of the National Counterintelligence Executive: Suspicious Visitors to Federal Facilities (archived at Internet Archive}}</ref> Subsequent to the NCIX bulletin, officials raised other red flags, including an ] alert, a ] alert, an ] security alert and a request that the ] investigate a specific case. The "art students" were subsequently treated with more caution by officials. <ref name="Salon"/> | |||
| === Leaked Drug Enforcement Agency report === | |||
| A leaked 60-page DEA report in 2002 revealed that up to 200 young Israelis had been arrested in America in the past year, of which about 140 were arrested before the ]. The other 60 were arrested on October 31, 2002 by the ] and Immigration and Naturalization Service in ], ], ], ] and ]. Rather than selling art, these Israelis were working in kiosks in shopping centres across America selling toys. The FBI was investigating the kiosks as a front operation for espionage activities. The report said that most of the Israelis interrogated by Americans reported having served in the ] in military intelligence, electronic signals interception and explosive ordnance units. One of the detainees was an Israeli general's son, another was a former bodyguard to the chief of the IDF, and another had operated Patriot missiles.<ref name="Telegraph">{{cite web |url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2002/03/07/wspy07.xml&sSheet=/news/2002/03/07/ixworld.html |title=Telegraph.co.uk: US arrests 200 young Israelis in spying investigation}}</ref><ref name="Sunday Herald">{{cite web |url=http://web.archive.org/web/20060423065411/http://ww1.sundayherald.com/37707|title=Sunday Herald (UK) via Internet Archive: Were they part of a massive spy ring which shadowed the 9/11 hijackers and knew that al-Qaeda planned a devastating terrorist attack on the USA?}}</ref> In 2002 several officials dismissed reports of a spy ring and said the allegations were made by a Drug Enforcement Agency who was angry his theories had been dismissed.<ref name=Seattle1/> | |||
| The DEA report also claims that Israeli companies that had provided telephony services for U.S. businesses and U.S. federal organizations were connected to the "art students" and advised that Israeli telephony companies should be investigated. It raised the possibility that "back doors" had been installed in communications equipment to assist Israeli espionage. <ref name="Haaretz">{{cite news |url=http://www.haaretz.co.il/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=162902&contrassID=2&subContrassID=5&sbSubContrassID=0&listSrc=Y&itemNo=162902 |title=Spies, or students? Were the Israelis just trying to sell their paintings, or agents in a massive espionage ring? |first=Nathan |last=Guttman |date=2002-05-07 |publisher=]}}</ref> | |||
| === Canadian espionage rumors === | |||
| In August 2004, a number of Israeli "art students" in ], ], ], ] and ] were deported from Canada for working in the country illegally. The ] wrote that the deportations "raised the specter of international espionage". However, claims that a spy ring was operating in Canada that were raised by newspapers were dismissed by Canadian officials. Officials noted that the Canadian art scammers did not target government officials or offices but instead focused on wealthy neighbourhoods <ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.forward.com/articles/5250/ |title=Espionage Ruled Out in Case of Bad Art |publisher=] |first=Seamus |last=McGraw}}</ref> | |||
| === Denial of spy ring by officials === | |||
| In 2002 several officials dismissed reports of a spy ring and said the allegations were made by a Drug Enforcement Agency who was angry his theories had been dismissed. ] spokeswoman Susan Dryden describe the claims as an "urban myth" <ref name=Seattle1>{{cite news |url=http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/archive/?date=20020307&slug=notspies07 |title=U.S. officials dismiss report of Israeli spies |last=Mintz |first=John |coauthors=Dan Eggen |date=March 7, 2002 |work=] |accessdate=October 18, 2008}}</ref> | |||
| Israeli newspaper '']'' also published an article on the spying allegations, noting that most of the allegations were based upon a single internal report from the DEA. It also noted that the U.S. administration was "desperate to keep the affair quiet" <ref name="Haaretz"/>. | |||
| === Official Israeli response === | |||
| The Israeli government has denied the espionage allegations, calling them nonsense. <ref name="Haaretz"/> | |||
| == References == | == References == | ||
Revision as of 08:22, 10 March 2010
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The art student scam is a confidence trick in which young people pretend to be art students and try to sell overpriced artwork claimed to be of their own production.
In a Chinese version of the scam, young Chinese people approach tourists at popular attractions such as Tiananmen Square. The scammer speaks English well enough to get into a conversation with the foreigner. The scammer claims to be an art student whose works are on display at a nearby exhibition which is part of the scam and sells mass-produced art reproductions at exorbitant prices. There are warnings about this scam in tourist guides.
A variant of this scam has been reported in various English-speaking countries since 2001. Here, the art is sold door-to-door, approaching the marks in their homes without the need for sham exhibition sites or art stores.
The scam was operated by Israelis in the United States beginning in summer 2000 or earlier. After it hit numerous facilities and private homes of staff members of the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), a DEA officer noticed the pattern and suspected an espionage program. The Israelis' mandatory military service contributed to the initial confusion, but ultimately they were deported for immigration offenses only. An internal DEA, leaked in 2002 in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks, gave rise to an urban myth that shaped much of the reporting about the scam, such as the idea that Israeli agents had been tracking the terrorists before the attacks. In any event the ongoing operation of the scam makes no sense as a spying program.
References
- "The famous art show ripoff in Tiananmen Square was recently cleaned up for the Olympics. This was a pretty funny one, where English-speaking 'art students' would strike up conversation with overseas visitors and tell them they happen to be in town for an art show across the street. The show was closing today when I first heard the spiel in 2006, it was closing today when I returned to Beijing in 2007, but the pre-Olympics cleanup really seems to have closed the collection of knockoff art." . See also .
- Frommer's China, Wiley, ISBN 978-0-470-52658-3, p. 140. "You should also be leery of any English-speaking youngsters who claim to be art students and offer to take you to a special exhibit of their work. The art, which you will be pressured to buy, almost always consists of assembly-line reproductions of famous (or not-so-famous) paintings offered at prices several dozen times higher than their actual value."
- Gandia, Renato (2009-08-19). ""Israeli art scam" preying on people's kindness". Calgary Sun.
- "Oil painting scam hits the Border". Border Mail. 2009-04-22.
- Dye, Stuart (2004-02-04). "Brush with law reveals art scam". NZ Herald.
Coulter, Narelle (2006-01-18). "Door slammed on 'original' art scam". Star News Group.
Feek, Belinda (2010-01-19). "Warnings out over art scam". Waikato Times. - "Information On An Israeli Art Scam". Komo News. 2006-08-30.
- "Israeli student 'spy ring' revealed". The Guardian. March 6, 2002. Retrieved 2010-03-06.
- Guttman, Nathan (2002-05-07). "Spies, or students? Were the Israelis just trying to sell their paintings, or agents in a massive espionage ring?". Haaretz.
- Mintz, John (March 7, 2002). "U.S. officials dismiss report of Israeli spies". Seattle Times. Retrieved October 18, 2008.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|coauthors=ignored (|author=suggested) (help) - ^ McGraw, Seamus. "Espionage Ruled Out in Case of Bad Art". Forward Magazine.
- "Tür an Tür mit Mohammed Atta". Die Zeit. October 2002.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)