PHILADELPHIA – A lawyer convicted of selling high-end wine despite strict Pennsylvania liquor laws hopes to win back the seized collection before it’s destroyed.
The Philadelphia Inquirer reported Friday that Arthur Goldman’s collection is worth an estimated $125,000 or more. The lot includes rare vintages not sold in state-run wine stores.
Police have seized nearly 2,500 bottles from Goldman after making undercover buys at his home in suburban Philadelphia. He has pleaded guilty to several related misdemeanours.
State law calls for contraband liquor to be destroyed. However, defence lawyer Peter Kratsa argues that much of the seized wine is from Goldman’s private collection and was never listed for sale. He is vowing to go to trial to reclaim them.
For now, police have stashed the wine — at room temperature — in an evidence room.
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