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Art Dealer to Plead Guilty of Scamming Celebrity Clients

By DNAinfo Staff on March 18, 2010 11:07am  | Updated on March 18, 2010 9:30am

Actor Robert De Niro arrives at a screening of the film 'Everbody's Fine' on Nov. 3, 2009 in Hollywood, California. An art dealer is accused of selling paintings owned by De Niro's father and pocketing the cash.
Actor Robert De Niro arrives at a screening of the film 'Everbody's Fine' on Nov. 3, 2009 in Hollywood, California. An art dealer is accused of selling paintings owned by De Niro's father and pocketing the cash.
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Jason Merritt/Getty Images

By Mariel S. Clark

DNAinfo News Editor

MANHATTAN — A former Upper East Side art-dealer accused of ripping-off clients including Robert De Niro and John McEnroe in a multi-million dollar fraud scheme is expected to plead guilty Thursday, the New York Post reported.

Lawrence Salander, 60, will plead guilty to charges he swindled two dozen clients and investors out of $93 million, his lawyer told the paper.

By pleading guilty, Salander will likely serve between six and 18 years in prison based on the amount of the money he pays back in restitution, the lawyer told the Post. Salander faced up to 25 years if convicted of all charges.

Prosecutors accused the art dealer of selling multiple shares in paintings to unwitting investors, including tennis legend McEnroe, the Daily News reported.

Lawrence Salander's Upper East Side Gallery, March, 2008.
Lawrence Salander's Upper East Side Gallery, March, 2008.
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Flickr/megadith

"Why sell it once when you can sell it three times?" former Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau said in 2009, according to the News.

Prosecutors also said Salander sold two of De Niro's late father's paintings and had the money wired to his own account without telling the estate of the sale, the Post reported.

Salander allegedly used the swindled millions to fund a lavish lifestyle that included private jets to Europe and expensive parties and jewelry for his wife, according to the News.