The daughter of a Nazi fugitive who fled to Argentina is now under house arrest in the nation over a painting stolen during World War II, authorities announced Tuesday.
Patricia Kadgien and her husband, Juan Carlos Cortegoso, first had their home in Mar Del Plata raided last week, and Argentine investigators searched several more of their properties on Monday.
Authorities were looking for a painting, “Portrait of a Lady” by Giuseppe Ghislandi, which has been missing for 80 years. The artwork was one of more than 1,000 pieces stolen by Hermann Göring from prominent Dutch-Jewish art dealer Jacques Goudstikker.
Kadgien is the daughter of Friedrich Kadgien, who was one of Göring’s financial advisors and fled to Argentina after the war. He died in 1978.
Argentine cops began looking into Kadgien after a Dutch newspaper spotted “Portrait of a Lady” in a real estate listing of her Mar Del Plata home. But when officers raided the residence last week, the famous painting wasn’t there. Instead, cops found a tapestry of a horse where the notorious artwork had been seen online.
On Monday, cops looked through the home again, along with an apartment and two more homes in Mar Del Plata associated with the Kadgien family. They found two other paintings dated to the 1800s but not “Portrait of a Lady.”
Kadgien and Cortegoso stand accused of obstructing the investigation and will remain under house arrest for at least 72 hours, authorities said.
With News Wire Services
