A producer reading a New York auction catalogue in 2008 spotted a wine his estate hadn’t made in the year listed. According to the federal complaint, Domaine Ponsot began making Clos Saint-Denis in 1982. The catalogue advertised bottles said to date from earlier decades. The producer intervened before the sale, and the lots were withdrawn. The bottles had come from Rudy Kurniawan. [2] [3]
Tomas er · Image source · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Geographic or historical context; not authentic crime evidence. The vineyard is wine-industry context in France, not a photographed source of the counterfeit contents.
The dinner table and the catalogue
Kurniawan built a reputation among collectors by bringing rare wines to expensive dinners. According to federal prosecutors, he blended cheaper wines to imitate those he claimed to sell, then poured the mixtures into old bottles, sealed them and applied counterfeit labels. When investigators checked the sources he supplied for the withdrawn wine, the accounts didn’t hold up. [1] [2] [3]
Ken Lund from Reno, Nevada, USA · Image source · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Geographic or historical context; not authentic crime evidence.
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The search in Arcadia
Agents searched Kurniawan’s California home in 2012. The FBI described old bottles soaking in a sink, freshly waxed bottles and supplies for making labels. The investigation also uncovered false statements he used to obtain a $3 million loan. A federal jury convicted him of mail fraud and wire fraud in December 2013. [1] [2] [5]
Daderot · Image source · Public domain · Geographic or historical context; not authentic crime evidence. The public garden is not Kurniawan’s residence.
The judgment
The judge sentenced Kurniawan to ten years in 2014 and ordered $20 million in forfeiture and roughly $28.4 million in restitution. On appeal, Kurniawan challenged an initial warrantless sweep of his house. The Second Circuit assumed for its analysis that the sweep was unlawful. It held that the later warrant had sufficient support even after setting aside what agents had seen during the sweep, and affirmed the judgment in December 2015. ICE reported removing him to Indonesia in April 2021. [1] [4] [5]
Case brief
Arcadia, California · 2004–2012
- Recorded outcome
- Rudy Kurniawan was convicted of mail and wire fraud in 2013 and sentenced to ten years in 2014. The Second Circuit affirmed in 2015. ICE reported his removal to Indonesia in April 2021.
Key moments
People in this case
Rudy Kurniawan Convicted in the counterfeit-wine case.
Agency photograph · U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement via AP and Voice of America · U.S. public domain
Look closer · 9 visuals
Inside the evidence.
Open a visual to explore what it contributed to the case—and the limits of what it shows. Photographs, historical reproductions and original illustrations are individually labeled. Open the notes for each image’s source, credit, and limitations; setting photographs do not depict crime scenes.
A vintage earlier than production
Original editorial illustration — not an actual evidence photograph or exhibit.
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The complaint records Ponsot offerings from years before production began.
A comparison diagram, not a counterfeit label or authenticated bottle.
Old glass does not authenticate contents
Original editorial illustration — not an actual evidence photograph or exhibit.
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Authentic components could conceal a false product identity.
No instructions or mixing recipe; no depicted bottle is actual evidence.
What the house search supplied
Original editorial illustration — not an actual evidence photograph or exhibit.
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Agents found materials consistent with the documented counterfeit operation.
Illustrated inventory guide, not a photograph of the searched house.
The lender received a false picture
Original editorial illustration — not an actual evidence photograph or exhibit.
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The separate loan scheme included omission of about $7.4 million in debts.
No reproduction of an actual application or private financial records.
Three money figures, three meanings
Original editorial illustration — not an actual evidence photograph or exhibit.
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The sums are not additive and do not establish money already paid.
The figure categories remain attached; no current recovery total is certified.
The documented legal aftermath
Original editorial illustration — not an actual evidence photograph or exhibit.
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The reviewed official reports supply dated legal milestones.
No current whereabouts or activities are claimed.
Burgundy vineyards in autumn, wine-industry context
Context photograph — not an actual crime exhibit. The vineyard is wine-industry context in France, not a photographed source of the counterfeit contents.
Read the evidence notes
Burgundy vineyards in autumn, wine-industry context. Geographic context photograph; not a crime-scene photograph or an original evidence exhibit. The vineyard is wine-industry context in France, not a photographed source of the counterfeit contents.
Geographic or historical context; not authentic crime evidence. The vineyard is wine-industry context in France, not a photographed source of the counterfeit contents. The source and reuse terms are linked below.
Tomas er · Image source · CC BY-SA 3.0
Daniel Patrick Moynihan United States Courthouse in Manhattan
Context photograph — not an actual crime exhibit.
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Daniel Patrick Moynihan United States Courthouse in Manhattan. Geographic context photograph; not a crime-scene photograph or an original evidence exhibit.
Geographic or historical context; not authentic crime evidence. The source and reuse terms are linked below.
Ken Lund from Reno, Nevada, USA · Image source · CC BY-SA 2.0
The public arboretum in Arcadia, California
Context photograph — not an actual crime exhibit. The public garden is not Kurniawan’s residence.
Read the evidence notes
The public arboretum in Arcadia, California. Geographic context photograph; not a crime-scene photograph or an original evidence exhibit. The public garden is not Kurniawan’s residence.
Geographic or historical context; not authentic crime evidence. The public garden is not Kurniawan’s residence. The source and reuse terms are linked below.
Daderot · Image source · Public domain
★ Key evidence used in a conviction · ✓ Exclusion or reversal · ◇ Disputed evidence · ⊘ Excluded at retrial · ◆ Identity / investigative finding, not a conviction. A symbol does not mean one item proved the whole case.
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Follow the dated entries, then select an event to find its regional setting. Shared-location pins open a group of events. Evidence symbols identify important findings and their limitations.
Open the map in its own window ↗Sources & further reading
- Wine dealer sentenced to ten years — Southern District of New YorkTrial and sentencing record described by DOJ: 2004–2012 counterfeit scheme, Arcadia operation, loan fraud, sentence and financial orders.
- Vintage Fraud — Federal Bureau of InvestigationInvestigation, trust relationships, house-search materials, producer cooperation and sales estimate. Sentencing month wording yields to dated DOJ release.
- United States v. Kurniawan — sworn criminal complaintInvestigative allegations concerning the 2008 auction and impossible vintages, source checking, lending and search context. Charging posture retained.
- ICE removes convicted wine counterfeiter — official bulletinDated removal to Indonesia via Dallas–Fort Worth; no present residence or activity certification.
- United States v. Kurniawan, No. 14-2928-cr — Second Circuit summary orderAffirms judgment on mail and wire fraud and explains why the later search warrant had sufficient independent support.
Editorial review: 2026-11-12 · 276 words