Stolen Picasso Etching Found in Milwaukee Apartment

A Pablo Picasso etching stolen from a Milwaukee art gallery in 2018 has been recovered after a landlord discovered it hanging on a wall in a vacant apartment, closing a seven-year mystery that had frustrated art dealers and law enforcement alike.

The artwork, titled “Torero” (Spanish for “bullfighter”), was created by Picasso in 1949 and is one of only 30 known copies signed by the artist in green crayon. It was appraised at between $35,000 and $50,000 at the time of the theft, according to AP News.

The Discovery

Milwaukee landlord Tim Dertz found the print while cleaning out an apartment of a tenant who had been evicted. He told WISN-TV that the framed artwork was hanging in a bedroom, covered in dust that suggested it had been there for a long time.

“It was kind of in a weird spot hanging on a wall,” Dertz told the station. “It looked like it had been there for a long, long time because it had tons of dust across the top of it.”

Dertz showed the piece to an antique dealer friend who recognized it as a Picasso and identified it as the one reported stolen in 2018. He then handed it over to police at the Milwaukee Police Department’s District Four station on August 5. An authenticator confirmed on August 6 that the artwork was the same etching stolen from DeLind Fine Art Appraisals LLC on February 16, 2018, as CBS 58 reported.

A Seven-Year Mystery

The theft occurred during a regular workday at DeLind Fine Art Appraisals, located at 761 N. Jefferson St. in downtown Milwaukee. The gallery had no security cameras at the time, and the doors were kept unlocked. The print vanished sometime between approximately 11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m.

“It just walked off the wall,” Bill DeLind, owner of the gallery, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel at the time, as Artforum reported.

DeLind’s former business partner, Michael Goforth, theorized that the theft was either a crime of opportunity or that the Picasso was specifically targeted because it was displayed in the window and clearly visible from outside. Goforth noted that a more valuable piece of art in the gallery was overlooked by the thief, as CBS 58 reported at the time.

After the theft, the artwork was registered with stolen-art databases in London and New York, ensuring that authorities worldwide would be alerted if the piece ever surfaced. A $5,000 reward was initially offered for its return, and a year later authorities increased the reward to $10,000, though that offer expired in May 2019.

Goforth, who died in February 2026, remained haunted by the theft. He called police every year on the anniversary of the crime, asking them to publicize it again in the hope the Picasso could be found.

“He would have been over the moon about this,” DeLind said. “It was special to him.”

An Emotional Reunion

When police contacted DeLind last week and asked him to examine the recovered artwork, he immediately recognized it. The sticker from his DeLind Fine Art Appraisals was still on the back of the framed print, just as it had been placed there in 2018.

“I was overwhelmed,” DeLind said. “I was at a loss for words. It was an overwhelming moment for me.”

“It was indeed mine,” he added. “It came back full circle.”

DeLind described the etching as a deeply personal piece. “Every [Picasso] is special,” he said. “This was a very special piece for me. And I felt devastated when it was stolen.”

Legal and Ownership Questions

The Milwaukee Police Department said the statute of limitations for theft and property crimes in Wisconsin is generally six years, which has now expired. Police do not expect criminal charges to be filed, though detectives are still investigating, as The Guardian reported.

The artwork remains in possession of Milwaukee police while the client who commissioned it for sale works with his insurance company. DeLind’s insurance company technically now owns the artwork after paying out the insurance claim years ago.

“The Milwaukee Police Department is grateful that this community member recognized the etching print and did the right thing and returned it,” the department said in a statement. “We are better together.”

What’s Next

DeLind hopes to work with the insurance company to potentially hang the artwork again in his gallery or sell it. He noted that given the story behind the piece, its value may now be closer to $50,000.

“Never in a thousand years would I have expected we would ever, ever see it again,” DeLind said.

The recovery serves as a reminder of the enduring power of art and the persistence of those who refuse to give up on lost treasures. For DeLind, the return of “Torero” is a deeply personal triumph that brings closure to a chapter that began with a devastating loss and ended with an unexpected homecoming.