Atty: Ex-NY art dealer to admit nearly $100M fraud

By JENNIFER PELTZ Associated Press Writer

NEW YORK (AP) - A lawyer for a once-high-flying Manhattan art dealer says his client plans to admit swindling nearly $100 million from his star-studded clientele.

Attorney Charles Ross says former gallery owner Lawrence B. Salander (SAL'-an-duhr) expects to plead guilty Thursday to grand larceny and scheme to defraud. Victims include tennis great John McEnroe and the estate of actor Robert De Niro's father.

Salander is accused of financing a deluxe lifestyle by selling art he didn't own and luring clients into bogus art investment opportunities.

Prosecutors say McEnroe lost more than $2 million. The estate of abstract expressionist Robert De Niro Sr. lost more than $1 million.

A judge shut down the dealer's Salander-O'Reilly Galleries LLC in 2007.