A Vero Beach art collector and his business partner are suing after an art investment deal went sour, leaving them $1 million shy of what they’re owed. They also want their artwork back.
Court documents say Robert Sager and his business partner, Charles Fern of Palm Beach County, entered into an art investment scheme with Othmar Castillo, an owner of Grant Antique Mall, located at 5900 S. U.S. 1 just north of the Indian River County line.
The contract called for Castillo to sell seven paintings valued at $1,098,000 for Sager and Fern, with Castillo and the two men to split the profits.
According to court documents, Castillo took possession of the paintings from Sager and Fern between May 2019 and December 2020 and then placed them in escrow with Northern Trust Bank in Vero Beach. The artwork includes three landscape paintings by American artist William Lester Stevens (1888-1969), two landscape paintings by American artist John Berninger (1897-1981), a portrait of a wife and two daughters by American painter Rae Sloan Bredin (1880-1933), and a small oil street scene by Pennsylvania artist Martha Walter (1884-1956).
The contract called for Castillo to make 63 monthly payments to the owners in exchange for the paintings and receive a one-third share of the profits once the artwork sold.
But Sager and Fern say Castillo stopped making payments after paying $12,500 on July 10, 2023, leaving a balance of $935,000. This June, the three men hammered out a settlement agreement with a new payment plan, but the lawsuit says Castillo failed to make the first payment, prompting the Oct. 25 breach of contract suit, asking Judge Cynthia Cox for a final settlement of $935,500, return of the artwork, plus attorneys’ fees.
Attorney Shayda Kayhani of Block & Scarpa of Vero Beach represents Sager and Fern, while Castillo is represented by Charles Castellon of Celebration, Fla. Calls to both attorneys went unreturned.
No date has been set yet for a hearing in this case, but the Grant Antiques Mall owners have other pending disputes over art deals to keep them busy.
St. Lucie County Clerk of Court records shows that Castillo and Grant Antiques are being sued by three other entities. Castillo lives in Fort Pierce. Grant Antiques is located in Brevard County.
Jadan Collectibles LLC of Vero Beach is suing Castillo and Elizabeth Mendez, co-owners of the Grant Antiques Mall, and The Castle Antiques and Collectibles, located in Fort Pierce, for failed investment deals totaling $280,000 to buy and sell seven paintings by Fort Pierce artist A.E.
“Beanie” Backus, two paintings by Florida Highwaymen artist Harold Newton, and a $40,000 deal to buy and sell gold coins. Jadan is also suing Grant Antiques for a $120,000 cash investment that was to be used to finance the purchase of art, gold and silver, the complaint says.
Stacey Stoddard of Martin County is suing Castillo, Menendez and Grant Antiques for failing to repay $35,000 of $60,000 that Stoddard invested in a deal to purchase Backus and Highwaymen paintings.
And Rechant Coins & Precious Metals of West Palm Beach is suing Castillo and Grant Antiques, claiming Castillo owes $104,475 for gold coins and silver bullion he purchased and refuses to pay for or return, according to court documents.
In all three of these cases, Castillo and Menendez have entered a Suggestion of Bankruptcy, which notifies the court that they have filed a Chapter 13 Petition in the Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Florida. This filing automatically stays the court proceedings until after the bankruptcy case is final.
No Suggestion of Bankruptcy has been filed in the local case brought by Sager and Fern.
In Brevard County, Mendez and Grant Antiques are being sued by two other plaintiffs.
Priscilla Gonzalez claims that a check from Grant Antiques for $30,000 was returned unpaid.
Florida Statute 68.065 allows the recipient of bad checks to collect three times face value, so Gonzalez is asking for $90,000.
Rebecca Murray claims that Grant Antiques failed to pay her $1,628 – the balance owed for purchasing and reselling two paintings by Florida Highwaymen.