SCOTTSDALE, AZ — It was a brazen theft, foiled by Scottsdale police.
A man was arrested in January on the rooftop of a Scottsdale art gallery. Police surrounded him with guns drawn. A quarter-million dollars worth of fine art – three Picassos and two Andy Warhols – were scattered where they had been dropped just feet away by the would-be thief.
Court records and interviews with law enforcement now tie that suspect, 32-year-old Harpreet Singh, to another art theft just days earlier in West Hollywood.
The ABC15 Investigators uncovered records that show Singh was arrested in late December and charged with burglary, grand theft, and possession of burglary tools in Los Angeles Superior Court.
In an attempt that mirrored the Scottsdale break-in, Singh allegedly broke into the Hamilton-Selway Fine Art gallery in West Hollywood on December 22 and stole two Andy Warhol edition prints valued at nearly $100,000.
Ron Valdez, the gallery’s chief operating officer, told ABC15 that gallery officials immediately reported the theft to law enforcement and the Art Loss Register, a database of stolen and disputed art.
“We put out a notice to dealers saying, ‘Please keep a lookout,’” he said.
Less than a week later, detectives arrested Singh outside another art gallery in West Hollywood only about a mile from where the art had been stolen. He was allegedly carrying one of the stolen Warhol prints; the other was found in his car, Valdez said.
“The individual tried to sell it on Sunset Boulevard in the same jurisdiction,” said Sgt. Evelio Galvez of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department West Hollywood Station.
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Court records show Singh was released in early January on $5,000 bond.
Days later, he showed up in Arizona.
Scottsdale police rushed to the downtown gallery district before opening hours on January 7 after an employee at the American Fine Art gallery called to report a burglary in progress.
Police and court records allege what happened next:
The employee said a burglar alarm went off at the gallery, which is at the corner of Scottsdale Road and Main Street. The employee discovered several pieces of art missing from the walls. He could hear someone talking upstairs. He notified the gallery owner, who called 911.
Police found a white BMW in the alley next to the gallery with a California license plate later found to be registered in Singh’s name. An emergency access ladder led to the roof. Police believe someone used the ladder to climb up on the roof.
Police spotted the suspect on the roof. Using a drone camera, they watched him run back and forth, appearing to drop items on the roof. Then he tried to hide by lying near an air-conditioning unit.
He ignored police commands, so they closed in with guns and a K-9 and arrested him.
He told police he was homeless and came up to the roof to sleep. He denied going into the gallery or owning a BMW. Police found car keys that belonged to the BMW next to the suspect on the roof.
Police believe he entered the gallery by breaking through a metal door on the roof. Once inside, he walked around and removed seven pieces of art from the wall, including three Picassos, two Andy Warhols, and a Keith Haring poster. The art was valued at a total of $250,000. Police believe he “stashed” the art on the roof of a neighboring business as he tried to hide from police.
Police had to collect the art inside quickly because rain threatened. They took pictures with their cell phones and then moved the art into evidence bags and got it off the roof.
Singh was indicted on charges of burglary, theft, and possession of burglary tools and pleaded not guilty. The bond was set at $50,000 with the requirement that he wear an electronic ankle monitor.
He was warned in an early court hearing: “You may not leave the state of Arizona without the permission of your judge.”
But that’s exactly what he did.
Court records say his ankle monitor was cut off and found ditched in a trash bin on March 6.
“Attempts to contact and locate the defendant have been unsuccessful,” his pre-trial services officer wrote to the court.
A warrant was issued for his arrest.
He didn’t show up a month later for an April 3 hearing at Maricopa County Superior Court. His attorney appeared on his behalf. In that hearing, ABC15 learned that Singh is back in custody again, this time in Nevada. He is expected to be extradited back to Arizona to face criminal charges.
“Certainly, these are serious charges,” his attorney, Julio Laboy, told ABC15 outside the courthouse after the hearing. “He does operate under the presumption of innocence. So until the whole process is played out, he's currently innocent."
Laboy added that there were other developments in the case, “that I can't speak to right now that will impact the end disposition.”
When ABC15 later learned of the criminal charges facing Singh in California, Laboy would only say, “I’m aware of the allegations.”
High-profile burglaries like the one that occurred at American Fine Art are very rare in Scottsdale, said Sgt. Allison Sempsis of the Scottsdale Police Department.
“Our officers were very quick to respond,” she said. “And the drone was extremely helpful in finding the man hiding.”
As for American Fine Art, the owner declined an on-camera interview with ABC15. For them, it’s business as usual. All of their artwork was recovered.
Email ABC15 Investigator Anne Ryman at anne.ryman@abc15.com, call her at 602-685-6345, or connect on X, formerly known as Twitter, and Facebook.