Ex-security guard sentenced for Georgia O'Keeffe art theft
UPI News Service, 01/11/2005
An ex-security guard who wanted to punish his employer by stealing a $500,000 Georgia O'Keeffe painting from a New Mexico museum is on probation.
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William Crumpton was sentenced to a year in jail Monday for burglarizing the Santa Fe County Treasurer's Office and attempting to steal the painting, but he was given credit for time already served, the Santa Fe New Mexican reported.
Judge Michael Vigil said he saw no purpose in sending Crumpton back to jail, but he placed him on five years probation and 100 hours of community service. He must also pay back $8,000 stolen from the treasurer.
After his sentencing, Crumpton said he never planned to steal Red Canna 1919 last January and sell it. He said he wanted to punish his employers at the museum. The painting was found hidden in a storage closet inside the museum.
Crumpton assured the judge he didn't steal a $1 million O'Keeffe painting that remains missing although he initially admitted to the December 2003 theft.
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