Man accused of hiding a pair of stolen sequins for too long ruby slippers An outfit worn by Judy Garland in ‘The Wizard of Oz’ plans to plead guilty, her attorney confirmed Friday.
The slippers were stolen from the Judy Garland Museum in her hometown of Grand Rapids, Minnesota, in 2005. Their whereabouts remained a mystery for nearly 13 years. The FBI recovered them in Minneapolis in 2018..
They fetch record prices for movie memorabilia. Sold at auction last month for $32.5 millionAccording to Heritage Auctions, which conducted the sale. The buyer has not yet been revealed.
Jerry Hal Salliterman, now 77, from Crystal, Minnesota. He was indicted in March on charges of major art theft and witness tampering..
He is expected to plead not guilty when arraigned Monday before a federal magistrate judge because magistrate judges cannot accept guilty pleas in Minnesota felony cases. But the district judge overseeing the case Friday scheduled a plea hearing for Jan. 10.
Salliterman’s attorney, John C. Brink, confirmed to The Associated Press that his client will change his guilty plea but did not provide details about a potential plea agreement. The North Dakota U.S. Attorney’s Office, which is prosecuting the case, declined to comment.
The man who stole the slippers, Terry Jon Martin, now 77, pleaded guilty to major art theft in 2023, with his lawyer admitting it was an attempt to score “one last point” after turning away from a life of crime. . A 76-year-old Grand Rapids man Sentenced to prison, one year of supervised release, and $23,000 in restitution. To the museum.
The indictment against Salitorman says he “received, concealed and disposed of cultural property” from August 2005 to July 2018. According to the indictment, Salitterman knew the items were stolen and that he had released a sex tape of a woman and threatened to “take her with him” if she kept quiet about the slippers.
Saluterman is also not in good health. He was using a wheelchair and oxygen support at his first court appearance in March.
Authorities have not said how Martin and Salitterman were connected. Martin, who lives near Grand Rapids, said at his plea hearing in October 2023 that he wanted to sell what he believed were real rubies from the shoe. But a stolen goods dealer known as Fence told him the rubies weren’t real, he said. Martin said he got rid of the slippers, but declined to say how he did so.
Garland’s character, Dorothy, wore several pairs during filming of the classic 1939 musical, but only four pairs are known to remain. Hollywood memorabilia collector Michael Shaw lent his pair to the museum before Martin stole them. Shaw eventually got them back and put them up for auction last month.
Garland was born Frances Gumm in 1922. She lived in Grand Rapids, about 200 miles (320 km) north of Minneapolis, until she was four years old. She died in 1969. The Judy Garland Museum says it has the world’s largest collection of Garland and “Wizard of Oz” memorabilia.
Note: The above video first aired on March 17, 2024.
