In1978sevenNormanRockwellpaintingsandasupposedRenoir,laterdiscoveredtobeaforgery,werestolenfromElayneGalleriesinSt.LouisPark.ItisstillthebiggesttheftinMinnesotahistory,andnoonewaseverconvictedforthecrime.Thisisthestoryofthetheft,theinvestigation,andthetwenty-yearquesttoreturnthearttoitsrightfulowners.TheFBIsuspectedaninsidejob.Wasitthescrappyworkingmotherwhoownedthegallery?Theownerofoneofthepaintings,whohadacheckeredpast?Wasabandofwell-knownandverytalentedMinneapolisburglarsinvolved?Andwhataboutorganizedcrime,whichhadthechannelsandexpertisetofencetheworksortoholdthemhostage?TantalizingthreadstiedthecasetothetheftofanotherstolenforgeryinNewYorkCity.Butastingoperationfellshort,andthetrailforrecoveringtheworksrancold.Thebureau’ssearchforthepaintingsstopped,anditclosedthecasein1987.GalleryownerElayneLindbergandherdaughterBonnie,motivatedinpartbytheirdesiretoclearElayne’sname,continuedthehunt.Theirstorymovestoshadyconnectionsandtheinternationaltradeinstolenart,throughPortugal,Argentina,LasVegas,andBrazil,beforeitsfinaldramaticresolution.
