Earl Jones's belongings on auction block
An etching by Picasso and monogrammed golf clubs are among the items that will be auctioned off next week from the estate of convicted fraudster Earl Jones.
On Thursday, members of the media were given a sneak peak at some of the items that will be auctioned off at the request of the trustee overseeing Jones’s bankruptcy.
"It's our view that most of the assets ... [have] come from effectively proceeds to which he was never entitled," said Phil Menal of RSM Richter.
The auctioneers have been instructed not to disclose which particular items belonged to the disgraced financial advisor and his wife Maxine Heayberd, said Empire Auctions owner Abe Rogo.
"I would have to say they probably did not have a professional decorator," Rogo told CBC Radio’s Daybreak. "They collected different things — you could find anything from very modern to an antique commode, an antique armoir, things like that."
Jones is awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty last week to two counts of fraud totaling roughly $50 million.
The charges covered his entire 27-year career as a financial advisor on Montreal’s West Island.
Victims unlikely to recoup much
Jones’s victims, including Christine Marlow, are in awe of some of the items on the auction block.
"I'm completely floored," said Marlow, who says she lost $300,000 to Jones. "I really had no idea he lived like that.
The sale of some of the items, including a painting by artist James L. Graham, has been disputed by Jones’s wife, who has claimed them in her divorce proceedings.
The Graham painting, which was also listed in the inventory of the estate of one of Jones’s clients, Peggy McCallum, remains on the auction block for now.
Rogo said he has received calls from several of Jones’s former clients concerned about how much money will be raised by the auction.
But it is unlikely they will recuperate much, if any, of their lost funds, Rogo said.
Most of what will be sold off is not expected to cover the cost of the bankruptcy.
"I feel very bad for the people," Rogo said. "It’s [heart-breaking] but our job is to do the very best with what we have and we’re gonna do it, I promise."
Jones’s estate will be available for viewing Saturday and Sunday.
The auction will begin Sunday afternoon and continue Monday through Wednesday evening.