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Spanning many years, the scheme grew into one of the largest art frauds in Canadian history: thousands of fakes bearing the forged signature of renowned Indigenous painter Norval Morrisseau.

When police first revealed the fruits of Project Totton back in 2023, eight suspects were arrested and more than 1,000 alleged ripoffs were seized. At the time, investigators believed the total fraud surpassed $100 million.

In a Barrie courtroom last week, the final suspect learned his fate. A jury found Jeff Cowan of Niagara-on-the-Lake guilty of three counts of fraud over $5,000 and one count of uttering a forged document.

The 49-year-old, who represented himself during trial, is due back in court next month to set a date for sentencing submissions. An eventual prison term appears all but certain.

BarrieToday court reporter Peter Robinson, who covered the high-profile fraud trial, is our guest tonight on Village Media's Closer Look podcast.

Hosted by Village Media’s Michael Friscolanti and Scott Sexsmith, and produced by Derek Turner, Closer Look is a new daily podcast that goes way beyond the headlines with insightful, in-depth conversations featuring our reporters and editors, leading experts, key stakeholders and big newsmakers.

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