Founder of Munich’s Bankrupt Galerie Thomas Investigated for Fraud
151Feb. 7, 2025
Raidmund Thomas, the founder of Munich’s long-runningGalerie Thomas, and his daughter Silke Thomas are being investigated forfraud, breach of trust, and delaying insolvency proceedings. Established in 1964 and co-led by Silke from 1996 on, the once-respected gallery specialized in German expressionist, modernist, postwar, and contemporary art works and was a regular presence on the international art-fair circuit. Galerie Thomas was conspicuously absent from Art Basel’s 2024 flagship show before declaring insolvency this past summer.
According toThe Art Newspaper(TAN), Silke was arrested in December and released January 24, while Raidmund’s whereabouts are unknown, but his two homes outside Munich and his apartment in the city are reported to have been tossed by investigators late last year, as were Silke’s home and the gallery itself. In January, per the estate’s insolvency administrator, Hubert Ampferl, the gallery’s offices and exhibition space were cleared out, the keys handed back to the landlord, and all property within returned to its rightful owners.
The Munich prosecutor’s office in a statement said that fraud damages were projected to surpass 10 million euros ($10.4 million), while Ampferl told TAN that his team had investigated claims from more than two hundred creditors. Silke’s lawyer, Marcus Traut, declined to offer comment to the publication, citing “respect for the pending criminal investigation,” while the prosecutor’s office cast the investigation as “an extensive procedure which is expected to take some time.” Artnet News in late January reported that a number of the gallery’s creditors and consignors had alleged they were owed six- and seven-figure sums by the gallery related to art sales.