'It’s (Probably) Not Rocket Science' returns for Season 3 with an intriguing art heist

The University of New Mexico's award-winning podcast, It's (Probably) Not Rocket Science (IPRNS), returns for Season 3 this fall with an episode worthy of a best-selling detective novel.

It happened nearly 40 years ago when two paintings were stolen from UNM's Harwood Museum of Art in Taos, N.M. The paintings have now been recovered and returned to the museum in what became a decades-long mystery that haunted the northern New Mexico community.

This episode of It's (Probably) Not Rocket Science, titled "Two Paintings, 40 Years, One Unexpected Homecoming," takes listeners to the Harwood Museum of Art where the "Harwood Heist" took place.

In 1985, at the time of the heist, the Harwood operated primarily as a public library. "The Aspens" by Victor Higgins and "Oklahoma Cheyenne" by Joseph Sharp were on display upstairs in the gallery. In March 1985, Jerry and Rita Alter walked into the library, and while Rita distracted the front desk worker, Jerry went upstairs and took the paintings, leaving only a piece of broken frame as a trace of "The Aspens." There was no security in the library at the time. Ironically, then-curator David Witt was away at a security conference that day, pressing the university for better protections.

"Sure enough, the day he's gone, some very infamous art thieves decided to take advantage of our situation," said Juniper Leherissey, director of the Harwood.

Police and the FBI were contacted, and a report was filed. What was not known at the time was that the Alters would later be linked to other high-profile art thefts.

For years, many thought the paintings would never be found, until a writer's breakthrough. Lou Schachter, author of the True Crime Road Trip blog, began digging into the Alters after following a story about a Willem de Kooning painting they stole in 1985 from the University of Arizona. That painting was later recovered in 2017, and a documentary titled "The Thief Collector" was made, now available on Peacock and Prime Video.

While researching auction records and the Alters' estate in Cliff, New Mexico, Schachter spotted images of the Higgins and Sharp works belonging to the Harwood.

"I'm not an art detective," Schachter said. "I'm not a reporter or any kind of journalist. I just, through sheer determination and force of will, connected dots that no one else had connected."

Schachter quickly alerted Leherissey. Though skeptical, after looking through old police reports and records, it was confirmed that the works were indeed the stolen pieces.

"I definitely was skeptical," Leherissey recalled. "They didn't say they knew where they were, but they said, we think these works belong to the Harwood."

In 2024, the FBI's Art Crime Team opened a case. After coordinating with museum officials, in May 2025, the paintings were discovered, and the FBI personally returned them to the Harwood. The FBI did not disclose who purchased the paintings at auction or how they were recovered. The works now hang back on the walls as part of the permanent collection titled "Taos Treasures Returned."

"It was really surreal … all this almost mythological story and then all of a sudden they're here, they're in the museum," Leherissey said. "The former curator, David Witt, thought about those paintings every day for many years, and I'm so glad they're back. It's definitely a homecoming for them."

In anticipation of their return, the museum echoed the University of Arizona's tactic when the de Kooning painting was returned, hanging empty frames in the gallery. For Schachter, this case revealed the hidden world of art crime and how easily stolen pieces can end up in private collections.

"Art theft is much more common than people realize," Schachter said.

For the Harwood, the return of "The Aspens" and "Oklahoma Cheyenne" helped restore cultural and community history. Higgins and Sharp were both key members of the Taos Society of Artists, a group of early 20th-century artists who helped northern New Mexico create its footprint in the art world.

"I think everyone loves a happy story of an art heist," Leherissey said. "And it's so intriguing to have these bizarre individuals who made a habit and a living off of taking advantage of smaller institutions."

To hear the podcast episode about the Harwood Heist, listen to It's (Probably) Not Rocket Science, available at podcast.unm.edu, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or anywhere else you get your podcasts. You can also follow IPNRS on Instagram and TikTok.