Like an Impressionist painting, the outlines of a massive art theft in Pebble Beach have blurred over the last week as the victims offered varying accounts of just what was stolen and how much it was worth.
But the changing details brought the situation into sharp relief for law enforcement officials.
"They're clearly lying to us," said Cmdr. Mike Richards of the Monterey County Sheriff's Department, raising questions about whether two men sharing a rented $4-million home in a gated community ever actually possessed the Rembrandts, the Jackson Pollock, the Van Gogh and the other works they say have gone missing.
Angelo Amadio, 31, and his housemate, a retired Boston oncologist named Ralph Kennaugh, have been named as suspects in the Sept. 25 crime -- though officials are still up in the air about just what they're suspected of having done. Neither has been charged and both deny any wrongdoing.
"We've repeatedly requested identifying information -- records of sale, contact information for the dealers, authentication material -- but they're not giving us anything," Richards said. "We're frustrated at their lack of cooperation."
The case has taken some unusual twists, with the Pebble Beach pair accusing the Sheriff's Department of "incompetence and corruption" as officers accuse them of fabricating the $80-million heist -- right down to the broken window lock that purportedly allowed the thieves into their home. Works worth a total of $72,000 were insured but the rest were not, largely because the landlord refused to allow an appropriate alarm system, Amadio said in an interview.
"What reason would we have for filing a phony claim on uninsured artwork?" he asked. "It's absurd."
Amadio said ample documentation, including a statement from an insurance agent who specializes in art, will be produced today at a "rebuttal press conference" in Santa Cruz. He said some material has been shared with authorities and some, stored on a laptop computer, was lost in the theft. Richards, the Sheriff's Department spokesman, said Thursday that the department has not received even a list of the missing works that was sent to news organizations earlier in the day.
"We believe this is a hoax," he said.
Richards also cast doubt on what was called a ransom note that showed up at the residence, a typed, two-line message demanding money and threatening the housemates with death. It included no information on where or how the ransom was to be paid, he said.
