Jerry Hal Saliterman, now 77, of Crystal, Minnesota, was charged last March with theft of a major artwork and witness tampering.
He’s expected to plead not guilty when he’s arraigned Monday before a federal magistrate judge, a formality because magistrate judges can’t accept guilty pleas in felony cases in Minnesota. But the district judge overseeing the case on Friday scheduled a change of plea hearing for Jan. 10.
Saliterman’s attorney, John C. Brink, confirmed to The Associated Press that his client will change his plea then to guilty, but he declined to give details about any potential plea agreement. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for North Dakota, which is prosecuting the case, declined to comment.
The man who stole the slippers, Terry Jon Martin, now 77, pleaded guilty in 2023 to theft of a major artwork, admitting to what his attorney said was an attempt to pull off “one last score” after turning from a life of crime. He was sentenced last January to time served because of his poor health.
The indictment against Saliterman says that from August 2005 to July 2018, he “received, concealed, and disposed of an object of cultural heritage,” and that Saliterman knew the slippers were stolen.
A defense attorney says a man accused of long hiding a stolen pair of ruby slippers that Judy Garland wore in “The Wizard of Oz” plans to plead guilty.
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