Socialite and former Andy Warhol protégée “Baby Jane” Holzer is expected to testify against an accused fraudster charged with stealing one of the late pop artist’s works from an ailing millionaire.
Holzer bought the “Heinz 57” wooden ketchup crate for $220,000 from James Biear after he swiped it while working for a grandson of newspaper magnate Joseph Pulitzer, prosecutor Lisa Korologos told jurors yesterday.
Biear, 50, was hired as a driver for poet Kenward Elmslie in 2005 and quickly embarked on a brazen scheme to loot the 76-year-old of his money and valuables, Korologos said during her opening statement in Manhattan federal court.
In addition to the Warhol box, Biear is accused of stealing 10 other artworks and transferring $3.2 million from an Elmslie bank account into one of his own.
Defense lawyer B. Alan Seidler said that all the items were actually gifts to Biear.