A $10 million settlement has been filed in federal court in Honolulu over valuable artwork that disappeared from Imelda Marcos’ Manhattan townhome during the collapse of her husband’s regime in the Philippines.
A foreign art collector who purchased the piece by Claude Monet agreed to pay $10 million to more than 9,000 Filipinos who successfully sued for human rights abuses under Ferdinand Marcos’ rule, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported.
The settlement was filed last week under seal. Names of the buyer and the art gallery that sold the painting, the purchase price and other details are confidential. In exchange for the settlement, plaintiffs agree to relinquish claims to the painting and not sue the gallery. Lawyers for the class-action plaintiffs hope final approval of the settlement will be granted in September.
In 1995, a federal judge in Honolulu awarded the plaintiffs nearly $2 billion against Marcos’ estate.
Imelda Marcos’ former secretary was charged in New York with conspiracy to sell the artwork. Prosecutors said she used false paperwork to sell a work from Monet’s “Water Lilies” series for $32 million.
Vilma Bautista, 74, was indicted on charges of conspiracy, tax fraud and offering a false instrument for filing. Two of her nephews also were charged. The indictment says that during the Marcos presidency his wife used state assets to acquire a vast collection of artwork and other valuables. Prosecutors said some of the art ended up in Bautista’s possession after the Marcoses were ousted in a citizen revolt in 1986.
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