UPDATE | An earlier version of this report incorrectly stated that Jeffrey Wood had succeeded in his appeal, however, he did not.
Jeffrey Wood, the individual who took the portrait of Winston Churchill, known as The Roaring Lion, from Ottawa’s Château Laurier hotel in the period between Christmas 2021 and early January 2022, has had his appeal against his prison term rejected.
The well-known photographer Yousuf Karsh, who had been a resident of the Château Laurier for an extended period, gifted the portrait to the hotel back in 1998. The painting was returned to the hotel subsequent to its disappearance and the extensive international search that concluded late last summer.
In March, Wood entered a plea of guilt for forgery, theft exceeding $5,000, and dealing with property acquired through criminal means. Three other charges were dropped.
Wood was handed a sentence of less than two years in prison back in May.
In the subsequent month, a judge from the appeals court directed that Wood be released from prison while awaiting the outcome of his appeal against the sentence.
Wood’s legal representative, Lawrence Greenspon, criticized the severity of the sentence, deeming it “excessively harsh.”
The heart of the appeal was based on the contention that the sentencing judge had erred by, among other things, improperly relying on international law and neglecting to contemplate a conditional sentence.
However, the decision handed down on Thursday did not concur with this argument.
“The appellant failed to pinpoint any fundamental error but merely sought for us to reassess the aggravating and mitigating factors and substitute our judgment for that of the sentencing judge. Such is not our mandate, and we decline to do so,” the ruling stated.
A differing viewpoint expressed that the sentencing judge had indeed made mistakes in considering Canadian and international precedents for art-related crimes, suggesting that a conditional sentence would have been suitable.
Greenspon has indicated his intention to petition the Supreme Court of Canada for permission to appeal the ruling issued on Thursday, as per the latest communication with CBC News.