Judge orders woman to pay $275,000 in art scam
A federal judge Wednesday ordered an imprisoned La Canada Flintridge woman to pay more than $275,000 in damages in a case involving the defrauding of a Lake Arrowhead artist by copying her work and selling the paintings as originals.
The decision is part of a larger case involving Christine Eubanks, 49, who this month admitted to running a scam that bilked buyers out of more than $20 million by selling bogus artworks and forging the signatures of well-known artists.
U.S. District Judge Ronald Lew ordered Eubanks, who is in prison on another conviction, to pay artist Charlene Mitchell $210,000 in actual and punitive damages and more than $66,000 in attorney’s fees and costs.
Eubanks and her husband, Gerald Sullivan, have agreed to cooperate in other fraud investigations.
The biggest entertainment stories
Get our big stories about Hollywood, film, television, music, arts, culture and more right in your inbox as soon as they publish.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
