Russia’s Investigative Committee accused Russian serviceman Maxim Koshkarev of helping produce forged paintings and sculptures attributed to Ernst Neizvestny.
As part of a criminal group, Koshkarev oversaw production of at least 30 counterfeit works between 2020 and 2026, investigators said. Members of the group sold the forgeries to private collectors in Russia and abroad, netting at least 90 million rubles.
Investigators searched several locations, including the Tretyakov Gallery, and seized 37 paintings and 10 sculptures, which were sent for expert analysis. The suspects face charges of fraud and unauthorized use of copyrighted works.
An exhibition of Neizvestny’s work ran at the New Tretyakov Gallery on Krymsky Val from December 16, 2025, to May 12, 2026, marking the centenary of the artist’s birth. The Tretyakov Gallery said only that it had been “informed of the investigation.”
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