In a dramatic and chaotic press conference in downtown Los Angeles on Monday, star fund manager Jeff Gundlach increased the reward offered for the return of his stolen property from $200,000 to $1.7 million.
Technical problems with a conference line made it difficult for reporters to call in. For those in attendance, Gundlach abruptly ended the press conference after just three questions.
Gundlach offered the money in response to a burglary in his home two weeks ago in which valuable art, wine, watches and cash were taken, in addition to his red 2010 Porsche Carrera 4S. A condition of payment is that the 13 pieces of art are returned undamaged.
Reuters reports the bulk of the massive heist consisted of rare, one-of-a-kind works by contemporary painter Jasper Johns, who last year won the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the late Dutch abstract artist Piet Mondrian and several other artists.
While the $200,000 initial reward is "still in play," the news service adds he posted a new $1 million reward for a 1936 oil on canvas by Mondrian called "Composition (A) En Rouge Et Blanc," plus an additional $500,000 for three works together— a 1956 Johns piece called "Green Target" and two wood-box collage works by Joseph Cornell, "Medici Princess" and "Pinturicchio Boy."
Anyone providing information resulting in the successful recovery of all 13 works, including pieces by Frank Stella, Franz Kline, Guy Rose, Philip Guston and Hanson Duvall Puthuff, would stand to receive the total reward of $1.7 million.
