Oct 19, 2009 6:45 pm US/Central
Auctioneers Pull Hecker Watches After WCCO Report
NEW GERMANY, Minn. (WCCO) ―
-
-
Among the 58 glitzy watches included a number of Rolexes as well as lesser known luxury lines.
CBS
On Monday evening, an auction was held in New Germany to sell off items that belong to former auto giant Denny Hecker as part of his bankruptcy case.
But what are not being sold are Hecker's watches. They were pulled off the auction block after WCCO reported that some of them are fakes.
Among the 58 glitzy watches included a number of Rolexes as well as lesser known luxury lines. Watch collector Jim Nash went to a preview of the auction to look at the watches and realized some of them weren't real.
"When we got there we began looking at a lot of the different watches and immediately bells began going off in my head," said Nash.
The auction house owner, Fred Radde, declined to comment but posted a notice on the auction Web site that said:
"Due to the fact that there has been some doubt cast on the authenticity of a few watches, the Bankruptcy Trustee has decided NOT to auction the watches at this time. We believe this doubt will greatly affect the majority of the watches that are indeed authentic."
An attorney for Hecker acknowledged that some of the watches were replicas.
A Bloomington couple who attended the auction on Monday was disappointed they had been pulled.
"It's a shame they're not here. We'd like to see what people actually pay for these things," said Bob Knotek.
The first auction of Hecker's items that was held back in August attracted more than a thousand people while Monday's auction attracted a much smaller crowd
Among the items left, a police cruiser, autographed items from sports legends including Arnold Palmer and Muhammad Ali, a NASCAR inspired golf cart and a number of children's toys like small dirt bikes and used sporting equipment.
Some of the people who attended Monday's auction feel bad for Hecker.
"He did a lot of good at one time for folks like that and unfortunately that didn't continue. But fascinated to see some of this stuff," said Tim Benoit of Dassel.
Because of the smaller crowd at Monday's auction, there were some bargains for those who attended. A LeRoy Neiman watercolor painting which could have gone for at least a few thousand dollars was sold for $400.
Right now, there are no more auctions scheduled but there will possibly be more in the future because many of Hecker's belongings, including his homes, will have to be sold to pay off his creditors.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
'She Wears Your Tee:' A Minn. Creation
Click to enlarge
Target Asked To Recall Valentine Toys 11 mins ago
Stumble It!
Reporting
