A second man has been charged in connection with the 2005 theft of a pair of ruby slippers that Judy Garland wore in 香蕉视频直播淭he Wizard of Oz,香蕉视频直播� according to an indictment made public Sunday.
Jerry Hal Saliterman, 76, of Crystal, Minnesota, was charged with theft of a major artwork and witness tampering. He did not enter a plea when he made his first appearance Friday in U.S. District Court in St. Paul.
The slippers, adorned with sequins and glass beads, were stolen from the Judy Garland Museum in the late actor香蕉视频直播檚 hometown of Grand Rapids, Minnesota, nearly 20 years ago and their whereabouts remained a mystery until .
The indictment says that from August 2005 to July 2018 Saliterman 香蕉视频直播渞eceived, concealed, and disposed of an object of cultural heritage香蕉视频直播� 香蕉视频直播� specifically, 香蕉视频直播渁n authentic pair of 香蕉视频直播榬uby slippers香蕉视频直播� worn by Judy Garland in the 1939 movie 香蕉视频直播楾he Wizard of Oz.香蕉视频直播櫹憬妒悠抵辈 The indictment says Saliterman knew they were stolen, and that he threatened to release a sex tape of a woman and 香蕉视频直播渢ake her down with him香蕉视频直播� if she didn香蕉视频直播檛 keep her mouth shut about the slippers.
Saliterman was in a wheelchair and on supplemental oxygen during his Friday court appearance. His oxygen machine hummed throughout the hearing and he bounced his knee nervously during breaks in the proceedings. He responded with 香蕉视频直播測es,香蕉视频直播� when U.S. Magistrate Judge Elizabeth Cowan Wright asked whether he understood the charges against him, but he said nothing about the allegations.
The case was not openly discussed in court. The magistrate ordered Friday that the indictment be unsealed, but it did not become publicly available until Sunday.
Saliterman香蕉视频直播檚 attorney, John Brink, said after Friday香蕉视频直播檚 hearing that he couldn香蕉视频直播檛 say much about the case, but: 香蕉视频直播淗e香蕉视频直播檚 not guilty. He hasn香蕉视频直播檛 done anything wrong.香蕉视频直播� Saliterman, who was released on his own recognizance, declined to comment to The Associated Press outside the courthouse.
The man who stole the slippers, Terry Jon Martin, 76, to theft of a major artwork, admitting to using a hammer to smash the glass of the museum香蕉视频直播檚 door and display case in what his attorney said was an attempt to pull off 香蕉视频直播渙ne last score香蕉视频直播� after turning away from a life of crime. He was to time served because of his poor health.
Martin香蕉视频直播檚 laywer that an old associate of Martin香蕉视频直播檚 with connections to the mob told him the shoes had to be adorned with real jewels to justify their $1 million insured value.
Martin, who lives near Grand Rapids, said at an October hearing that he hoped to take what he thought were real rubies from the shoes and sell them. But a person who deals in stolen goods, known as a fence, informed him the rubies weren香蕉视频直播檛 real, Martin said. So he got rid of the slippers.
Defense attorney Dane DeKrey wrote in court documents that Martin香蕉视频直播檚 unidentified former associate persuaded him to steal the slippers as 香蕉视频直播渙ne last score,香蕉视频直播� even though Martin had seemed to have 香蕉视频直播渇inally put his demons to rest香蕉视频直播� after finishing his last prison term nearly 10 years earlier.
香蕉视频直播淏ut old habits die hard, and the thought of a 香蕉视频直播榝inal score香蕉视频直播� kept him up at night,香蕉视频直播� DeKrey wrote.
According to DeKrey香蕉视频直播檚 memo, Martin had no idea about the cultural significance of the ruby slippers and had never seen 香蕉视频直播淭he Wizard of Oz.香蕉视频直播�
The documents unsealed Sunday do not indicate how Martin and Saliterman may have been connected.
In the classic 1939 musical, Garland香蕉视频直播檚 character, Dorothy, had to click the heels of her ruby slippers three times and repeat, 香蕉视频直播淭here香蕉视频直播檚 no place like home,香蕉视频直播� to return to Kansas from Oz. She wore several pairs during filming, but only four authentic pairs are known to remain.
The FBI never disclosed exactly how it tracked down the slippers. The bureau said a man approached the insurer in 2017 and claimed he could help recover them but demanded more than the $200,000 reward being offered. The slippers were recovered during an FBI sting in Minneapolis the next year. Federal prosecutors have put the slippers香蕉视频直播� market value at about $3.5 million.
Hollywood memorabilia collector Michael Shaw had loaned the pair to the museum before Martin stole them. The other pairs are held by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the and a private collector. According to John Kelsh, founding director of the museum, the slippers were returned to Shaw and are being held by an auction house that plans to sell them.
Garland was born Frances Gumm in 1922. She , about 200 miles (320 kilometers) north of Minneapolis, until she was 4, when her family moved to Los Angeles. She died in 1969. The which includes the house where she lived, says it has the world香蕉视频直播檚 largest collection of Garland and 香蕉视频直播淲izard of Oz香蕉视频直播� memorabilia.
Steve Karnowski, The Associated Press
