Indicted Qatari art collector & Diana ex-lover art dealer probe

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Diana's lover embroiled in Middle East art scandal
By Chris Hastings, Media Correspondent
(Filed: 24/04/2005)

Oliver Hoare, one of Britain's most successful art dealers and a lover of the late Diana, Princess of Wales, has become embroiled in the official inquiry into the financial dealings of Sheikh Saud Al Thani of Qatar, the world's biggest collector.

The Art Newspaper, the art world's most respected publication, will this week reveal that three invoices to Sheikh Saud, amounting to more than £20 million and issued by one of Mr Hoare's companies, are being examined by investigators in the Qatari capital Doha.

Sheikh Saud, a cousin of the Emir of Qatar who has spent many tens of millions of pounds in the London art market, was placed under house arrest last month, following allegations over the misuse of public funds.

Apart from being a private collector, Sheikh Saud was responsible for using state funds to buy work for five new museums in Doha. Prior to his arrest, he was removed as head of the national council for culture.

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