 His art career began with paintings of tugboats during his teenage years, and later, in the 1970s, his abstract work sold for as much as $1500.After a stint in the army, he joined the New York City police force and initially worked undercover on organized crime cases, including narcotics work related to the French Connection.After making several art crime arrests, in 1971 he was appointed the sole member of the New York City Police Department's bureau for art crime, the only bureau of its kind in the nation.