A stolen Pablo Picasso drawing, valued at more than $75,000, was recovered by authorities and will be returned to its owner, a museum in southwestern Colombia.
Authorities said the drawing, which had been missing for more than a year, was found when a man attempted to sell it, according to local news reports. The man, whose name was not released, was arrested but he will not be charged with theft because authorities could not establish that he stole the painting from the Edward Negret museum in the city of Popayan.
But he may be charged with “receiving stolen goods,” a prosecutor told local media.
Painted around 1930, the work depicted the Greek god of wine, Dionysus, with a woman in his arms, and it was donated to the museum in 1994 by Edward Negret, a Popayan native.
But the untitled etching disappeared from the museum’s walls on October 21, 2011. The painting was last seen by two visitors, who entered the museum shortly before its doors closed.
Authorities are still looking for the men who stole the painting, and they are are not alone in their search for Picasso pinchers. According to London’s Daily Mail, Picasso’s paintings have been stolen more than any other artist, with the Spanish master having 1,147 paintings registered as stolen, missing or disputed in 2012.
