How a father and daughter duped NYC's art world with fake Warhols and Banksys

Who is Vozinha, Cape Verde’s viral goalkeeper at the World Cup?

From his hometown of Sao Vicente in Cape Verde, Vozinha has been his jersey name throughout his club career.Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha broke down in tears at the end of the 0-0 draw with Spain after the 40-year-old was mobbed by his teammates following a stunning display as he denied the European champions victory in their World Cup opener.Cape Verde were pinned back in their own half for much of Monday’s game, but whenever Spain broke through their dogged rearguard, Vozinha came to the rescue.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4World Cup racism monitor urges FIFA to remove VAR official over gesturelist 2 of 4Preview: France kicks off World Cup campaign with tricky match vs Senegallist 3 of 4Tunisia sack boss Sabri Lamouchi after World Cup thrashing by Swedenlist 4 of 4Spain held to shock draw by Cape Verde in their World Cup openerend of listHis heroics earned him the player of the match, pulling off a string of saves at the end of the first half to deny Ferran Torres, Pedri and Aymeric Laporte.Here’s everything we know about the Cape Verde goalkeeper:Cape Verde’s goalkeeper, Vozinha, celebrates at the end of the 2026 World Cup Group H match between Spain and Cape Verde at Atlanta Stadium on June 15, 2026 [AFP]Where does Vozinha play?Vozinha goalkeeps for Chaves in Portugal’s second-tier football league.The World Cup is by far the biggest stage he has reached, but Vozinha began his club career at home with Batuque FC, before transferring to CS Mindelense.The veteran player’s experience comes from the myriad clubs he has represented – from Progresso in Angola to Zimbru Chisinau in Moldova, Gil Vicente in Portugal, AEL Limassol in Cyprus and AS Trencin in Slovakia, before arriving at Chaves.Is Vozinha his real name?No, Vozinha is a moniker for Josimar Jose Evora Dias. It came from his grandparents, whom he spent most of his time with as his father was in the military and his mother was working. The name checks out, since it means “little granny” in Portuguese.From his hometown of Sao Vicente in Cape Verde, Vozinha has been his jersey name throughout the nomadic club pilgrimage across Africa and Europe.“When I arrived in Angola, there was another goalkeeper named Josimar, and I said, ‘I am not going to put Josimar II on the shirt’. If everyone knew me as Vozinha in Cape Verde, that’s what I would be,” he told FIFA in an interview earlier this year.What did Vozinha say after the match?The Cape Verde keeper was reduced to tears by his heroics and fairytale World Cup debut.“Very proud… It is an honour for me to represent my country,” Vozinha told reporters of his island nation, the third smallest nation to qualify for a World Cup.“I cried because I grew up with my grandparents and, unfortunately, they were not here; they died a few years before, and they did everything for me and my life,” he added.“Also, my mum, she didn’t manage to be here because of the visa. The money for the visa, we didn’t manage on time, and I would like her to be here.”Is Vozinha world-famous now?Yes, on all counts.The goalkeeper’s Instagram following jumped from a modest 500,000 to nearly 5 million within a few hours of full-time in the Spain match.His quiet brilliance was spotlighted on the world’s biggest stage for all to see.French football star Paul Pogba took to social media after the match in praise of Vozinha.“The Cape Verde goalkeeper is really something, waaaaw,” he wrote.

Who is Vozinha, Cape Verde’s viral goalkeeper at the World Cup?

Hotels have a big World Cup problem: Bookings are running far below projections

General view of Arrowhead Stadium, in Kansas City, Missouri, which will be hosting some of the World Cup matches this summer.

Jamie Squire/Getty Images North America

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Jamie Squire/Getty Images North America

With only six weeks to go before the start of the World Cup, hotels at most of the cities hosting the tournament are facing a major problem: Bookings are running far below what they had expected.

For some metro areas such as Kansas City, bookings are running even below what a typical June or July would bring, according to an industry survey released on Monday by the American Hotel and Lodging Association. The report was conducted last month and a spokesperson said it's based on 205 respondents "representing hotel operators and owners, many of whom own multiple hotel portfolios across the country and across multiple World Cup markets."

AHLA said the disappointing bookings stem from fewer than expected international travelers and large cancellations by FIFA — the organizer of the World Cup —

leaving hotels with an unexpectedly large number of empty rooms.

"Despite more than 5 million tickets sold (for World Cup matches), this demand has not yet translated into strong hotel bookings," the AHLA said in the report.

The disappointment comes after the hotel industry was bracing for a strong summer in 2026. The World Cup is taking place across the U.S., Canada and Mexico — with 11 U.S. cities hosting games. In addition, the U.S. is celebrating the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, which was also expected to bring an influx of foreign visitors.

Overseas visitors are critical to the hotel industry, the AHLA says, because they tend to spend more — and stay longer.

But the AHLA

warned nearly 80% of hotel bookings across host cities are running below initial forecasts, according to its survey. In Kansas City, 85% to 90% of hotels reported bookings below projections.

World Cup organizers in Kansas City pushed back to the survey, telling The Athletic that embassy staff in countries such as the Netherlands are deploying additional staff to the city in anticipation of a high number of visitors. KC2026, the host committee, did not immediately reply to a request for comment from NPR.

There were bright spots, however, for host cities Miami and Atlanta.

About half of survey respondents in the capital of Georgia reported bookings in line or ahead of projections, while about 55% of respondents in Florida's biggest metro city reporting stronger-than-expected projections.

Japan supporters celebrate after their team beat Spain at a 2022 World Cup game held at the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha, Qatar, on Dec. 1, 2022.

Adrian Dennis/AFP via Getty Images

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Adrian Dennis/AFP via Getty Images

Not coming to America

The survey results appear to be another sign that overseas travelers are not planning to come to the U.S. in the numbers once expected as a result of a slew of factors including tighter immigration policies by the U.S. administration.

"Even with global anticipation building, the path to the U.S. for many World Cup travelers feels increasingly less like a red-carpet welcome," the AHLA said in its survey. "There is a perception that international travelers may face lengthy visa wait times, increased visa fees, and lingering uncertainty around entry processing."

The AHLA also cited other factors such as the strong U.S. dollar and concerns about airport screening as "contributing to a growing sense that visiting the U.S. for the World Cup may be more complicated and costly."

FIFA has continued to tout the "unprecedented" demand for the tournament, and has said it expects the World Cup to break attendance records.

Meanwhile, White House spokesman Davis Ingle told NPR last week for a story on World Cup demand that the tournament "will no doubt be one of the greatest and most spectacular events in the history of mankind," and that

How a father and daughter duped NYC's art world with fake Warhols and Banksys

A suspected forgery of an Andrew Wyeth painting is seen at RoGallery in New York, Tuesday, April 28, 2026.

Jake Offenhartz/AP

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Jake Offenhartz/AP

NEW YORK — A little over a year ago, the New York City art dealer Robert Rogal received a visit to his private showroom from a young woman, who seemed eager to offload a family heirloom.

Introducing herself as Karolina Bankowska, she carried a framed painting signed by Andrew Wyeth, resembling the watercolor landscapes the celebrated artist had completed early in his career. Intrigued, Rogal accepted the piece on consignment, figuring it might fetch between $20,000 to $30,000 at auction.

"The provenance was a little fuzzy," he said. "But she seemed credible. It wasn't an obvious counterfeit."

In fact, Rogal now believes the painting was a fake — one of at least 200 carefully designed imitations that federal prosecutors say Bankowska, 26, and her father Erwin Bankowski, 50, tried to pass off to unwitting buyers.

On Tuesday, the duo pleaded guilty to defrauding their victims — including some of New York City's most prominent fine art auction houses — of at least $2 million.

The counterfeits, which were forged in Poland by an unnamed co-conspirator, were often reproductions of lesser-known works by prominent and prolific artists, like Banksy and Andy Warhol, prosecutors said. Their most profitable fake, purportedly by the artist Richard Mayhew, was sold by the auction house DuMouchelles last October for $160,000.

A representative for DuMouchelles said they had cooperated with federal authorities but were not authorized to discuss the sale further. Several other auction houses targeted in the scheme, including Bonhams, Phillips, Freeman's and Antique Arena, either declined or did not respond to inquiries.

The father and daughter — Polish citizens living in New Jersey — face charges of wire fraud conspiracy and misrepresenting Native American–produced goods, a charge stemming from their duplication of the Luiseño artist, Fritz Scholder.

They face the possibility of more than three years in prison under federal guidelines, in addition to $1.9 million in restitution and possible deportation to Poland.

In court on Tuesday, Bankowska told a judge that her "conduct was wrong and I am guilty." Her attorney, Todd Spodek, said his client had placed more than $1 million in an escrow account.

Through a Polish interpreter, Erwin Bankowski also apologized. His attorney, Jeffrey Chabrowe, added that his client had "regrettably made a terrible decision in an effort to support his family."

As news of the fakes reverberated around the art world, experts described the scheme as a classic of the genre — one that is far more prevalent than some in the industry would like to admit.

"The only unusual thing about this case is that the forgers got caught," said Erin Thompson, a professor of art crime at the City University of New York.

"People think of the art world as a genteel place full of cultured people who just want to share the wonder of beautiful art," she added. "You should assume there are a lot more fakes out there."

Prosecutors said the father and daughter began commissioning a Polish artist in 2020 to create the fake artworks. Using antique paper, they also forged stamps to attach to the paintings, adopting the names of since-shuttered galleries where a given artist might have plausibly shown their work.

It wasn't long before the sales began to draw scrutiny. In March 2023, representatives for the artist Raimonds Staprans caught wind of a forged painting, "Triple Boats," for sale by an auction house. A few days after the reps contacted the auction house, the painting sold to a buyer for $60,000, prosecutors said.

Thompson, the professor of art crime, noticed other irregularities as well. The gallery stamp on the back of the faked Wyeth, for example, listed its year as 1976, but included a zoning address number that had been phased out in 1962.

Coinci

How a father and daughter duped NYC's art world with fake Warhols and Banksys

Who is Vozinha, Cape Verde’s viral goalkeeper at the World Cup?

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Who is Vozinha, Cape Verde’s viral goalkeeper at the World Cup?

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Hotels have a big World Cup problem: Bookings are running far below projections