MINNEAPOLIS (AP) 鈥 A man accused of long hiding a stolen pair of sequined ruby slippers that Judy Garland wore in 鈥淭he Wizard of Oz鈥 plans to plead guilty, his attorney confirmed Friday.
The slippers were stolen in 2005 from the Judy Garland Museum in her hometown of Grand Rapids, Minnesota. Their whereabouts remained a mystery for nearly 13 years until . They fetched a record price for movie memorabilia when they were last month, according to Heritage Auctions, which conducted the sale. The buyer still has not been revealed.
Jerry Hal Saliterman, now 77, of Crystal, Minnesota, was with theft of a major artwork and witness tampering.
He鈥檚 expected to plead not guilty when he鈥檚 arraigned Monday before a federal magistrate judge, a formality because magistrate judges can鈥檛 accept guilty pleas in felony cases in Minnesota. But the district judge overseeing the case on Friday scheduled a change of plea hearing for Jan. 10.
Saliterman's attorney, John C. Brink, confirmed to The Associated Press that his client will change his plea then to guilty, but he declined to give details about any potential plea agreement. The U.S. Attorney's Office for North Dakota, which is prosecuting the case, declined to comment.
The man who stole the slippers, Terry Jon Martin, now 77, to theft of a major artwork, admitting to what his attorney said was an attempt to pull off 鈥渙ne last score鈥 after turning from a life of crime. He was to time served because of his poor health.
The indictment against Saliterman says that from August 2005 to July 2018, he 鈥渞eceived, concealed, and disposed of an object of cultural heritage,鈥 and that Saliterman knew the slippers were stolen.
Saliterman is also in poor health. He was in a wheelchair and on supplemental oxygen last March during his first court appearance.
Authorities have not said how Martin and Saliterman might have been connected. Martin, who lives near Grand Rapids, said at his plea hearing in October 2023 that he hoped to sell what he thought were real rubies from the shoes. But a person who deals in stolen goods, known as a fence, informed him the rubies weren鈥檛 real, he said. Martin said he then got rid of the slippers, but declined to say how he did so.
Garland鈥檚 character, Dorothy, wore several pairs while filming the classic 1939 musical, but only four pairs are known to remain. Hollywood memorabilia collector Michael Shaw had loaned his pair to the museum before Martin stole them. Shaw eventually got them back, and had them auctioned last month.
Garland was born Frances Gumm in 1922. She , about 200 miles (320 kilometers) north of Minneapolis, until she was 4 years old. She died in 1969. The says it has the world鈥檚 largest collection of Garland and 鈥淲izard of Oz鈥 memorabilia.
