FBI
FBI agents unveiled the stolen painting to the Wood family at their Newark, N.J. residence earlier this month.FBI
The doctor was “just thrilled” to see his father’s painting returned after half a century away, relative David Woodtold CBS Newsin an interview.
No arrests have been made because everyone presumed involved is dead, Sandra Barker of the Salt Lake City field office tells PEOPLE.
The circa-1784 painting is a sister piece to the similarly-named and dated “The School Mistress,” which now hangs in Tate Britain and which is credited for launching Opie’s career.
Mobsters targeted Earl Leroy Wood’s New Jersey home twice in July 1969.
Among those to respond to the home in the hours after the attempted burglary was Anthony Imperiale.
Anthony Imperiale in Newark, N.J.AP Photo
AP Photo
The New Jersey politician had gained notoriety during the 1967 race riots for wielding a baseball bat against Black people and later went on to become a state senator who prioritized the suppression of Black people’s vote, according to his1999NewYorkTimesobituary, which quoted him as saying “when the Black Panther comes, the white hunter will be waiting.”
At the crime scene, the FBI now says, the politician spoke with the Wood’s estate caretaker and learned that among the collector’s treasures was what the caretaker told him was a “priceless” Opie painting.
A flier noting the theft of “The Schoolmistress” from the Wood’s residence and noting a reward for its recovery.FBI
Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up forPEOPLE’s free True Crime newsletterfor breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.
This time, the heist was successful and the painting was reported stolen on July 25 of that year.
Festa confessed to the burglary a few years later, while cooperating with prosecutors at Donnerstag’s 1975 murder and burglary trial, telling the court that the caper had been at the behest of Imperiale, who at the time of the trial was a state senator.
A copy of the presale letter of availability addressed to Dr. Earl Leroy Wood from Spink & Son, Ltd., authenticating and describing the quality of the John Opie oil on canvas, dated September 23, 1930.FBI
However, with “law enforcement pressure,” the FBI said they believe the painting was passed along to another mobster and “remained in the hands of organized crime members” between 1969 and the late 1980s, although the painting’s location during that timespan is officially “unknown.”
Documents regarding the authenticity of the John Opie painting and confirming the Wood family’s rightful ownership of the stolen oil on canvas.FBI
The man who purchased the mobster’s Hallandale, Fla., home – and who was unaware of the “identity” and “history” of the painting, per the FBI, and was not named in the agency’s press release – later moved the painting to a Utah residence, where it remained until his death in 2020.
The Wood family posed with the newly-returned John Opie painting, “The Schoolmistress,” January 11, 2024.FBI
During the two-year federal investigation, FBI agents poured through decades-old documents, including one to the doctor from Spink & Son, Ltd. in London dated September 23, 1930, confirming the sale and noting: “As far as any picture can be said to be perfect after having been painted for 140 years this one certainly is.”
Despite the painting’s notorious handling in recent decades, relative David Wood told CBS News that the painting had just “one or two minor blemishes.”
“For a painting that’s 240 years old and has been on a roundabout journey, it’s in pretty good shape,” David Wood told the outlet. “Whoever has had their hands on it, I’m thankful they took care of the painting.”
source: people.com
