US man pleads not guilty to forged art sales

A Florida man has pleaded not guilty to defrauding a Los Angeles art collector out of more than $2 million by selling him forgeries of the work of Claude Monet, Vincent van Gogh and Jackson Pollock. Matthew Taylor of Vero Beach entered the plea Monday in a Los Angeles federal court to seven felony counts, including wire fraud and money laundering. He is scheduled to go to trial April 3. Prosecutors say the 43-year-old former art dealer is accused of altering paintings from unknown artists to make them appear to be from their famous counterparts, then selling the bogus pieces at sky-high prices. Authorities say he also placed fake labels on the artwork to claim they were once part of prestigious collections at museums.