A Web of Lies: The Swindler Behind One of the Biggest Art Frauds in History Tells All

As an art dealer in London and Miami, Inigo Philbrick had the Midas touch and lived the high life, with private jets, $5,000 bottles of wine, and $7,000 suits. But in 2019, he was exposed as a swindler who had created one of the largest art frauds in history, a Ponzi-style web of lies that conned collectors and investors.

- Dalya Alberge

In 2022, aged 34, he was sentenced to seven years in jail, with two years of supervised release and an order "to pay forfeiture of $86,672,790" (about £64m).

Now, having been released from prison, he claims not to know where the $86m is and expresses regret rather than remorse in a forthcoming BBC documentary.

Asked whether he has the money, he replies with a grin: "No." He says: "I'm obviously in no position to do anything other than say how sorry I am. But there is a small part of me that thinks: 'What about all the good deals?'"

He was interviewed for more than 14 hours for a two-part, two-hour documentary, titled The Great Art Fraud, released next week.

The production also features Victoria Baker-Harber, a Made in Chelsea socialite with whom he fled Britain, hiding out in the Pacific country of Vanuatu, where he was eventually arrested by the FBI.

She too plays down any wrongdoing, saying: "You could say he's a criminal, but who hasn't done something illegal?"