Accidental Discovery of Stolen Works by Prominent Artists from the Ministry of Culture's Office

According to ISNA news agency, 27 works by prominent Iranian artists that were stolen by the 'property custodian' from the Visual Arts Office in Tehran have now been discovered and returned to the office. These 27 works include two pieces by Bahman Mohasses, two by Reza Mafi, three by Farideh Lashai, two by Hossein Zendeh-Roudi, ten by Ardeshir Mohasses, two by Parvaneh Etemadi, one by Mehdi Vishkai and Alireza Esfahbadi, and four by Mir Abdolreza Daryabigi. Majid Malanourouzi, the director of the Visual Arts Office of the Ministry of Culture, stated that all the works sold by the property custodian have been returned, and the offending individual has been identified as a violator and expelled from the collection, with the process of pursuing his case underway. Malanourouzi also noted that since these works were taken out by the property custodian, who was responsible for their maintenance and protection, it cannot be said that they were stolen. This incident came to light after one of the buyers inquired about the value of a piece they wanted to purchase, leading officials to accidentally discover the unauthorized sale of a collection of works. Alireza Sami-Azar, former head of the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art, mentioned that one of those involved in the sale recalled seeing one of the pieces in an official catalog, which led to the works being returned to the collection. Sami-Azar explained that the property custodian is not allowed to remove any items from the collection without the direct permission of the responsible authority, and that such actions require the signature of the director or their deputy. Malanourouzi elaborated that if the works were in the Museum of Contemporary Art, their removal would not be possible without the director's direct consent. He stated that the custodian betrayed their trust and sold the works, which were subsequently returned after necessary follow-ups. When asked how such a number of paintings could be removed without the authorities noticing, he remarked that the custodian thought no one would find out and made a completely naive decision, which led to legal and administrative follow-ups that resulted in the individual admitting their wrongdoing.