Ex-student Charged in MSU Art Theft Case After Nearly a Year

Flower Mound: Almost a year after the incident, a former student is in hot water for stealing art from the Fain Fine Arts Center at Midwestern State University.

Viggo Diemar was arrested and spent a night in Wichita County Jail before posting a $10,000 bail. He was booked on January 7 and released the next day.

Now, it’s important to remember that anyone charged with a crime is innocent until proven guilty in court.

According to court documents, Diemar was at an apartment on January 20, 2024, but got kicked out after a fight. Later, he allegedly brought the stolen paintings to that same apartment and admitted to taking them.

Witnesses told campus police they saw him tossing the paintings into a dumpster. Sadly, those artworks are now lost, likely buried in a landfill.

One of the stolen pieces, “Alice,” was created by MSU alumna Katey LaForge and was previously displayed at the university. The other piece, “State of Soul II,” was painted by Robert Horvath, another MSU graduate.

Both artworks were valued at $500 each, and MSU Police Chief Steven Callerman noted that “Alice” was bought in 2013, while “State of Soul II” was purchased in 1999.

This whole situation is a real bummer for the art community at MSU.