French sculptor Richard Orlinski, whose brightly coloured animal sculptures have become a familiar sight across the Riviera and in Monaco, is under a preliminary investigation for suspected organised money laundering and misuse of corporate assets, according to Europe 1.
The Paris prosecutor’s office opened the inquiry at the start of 2026, with the case handed to the OCRGDF, France’s central office for combating major financial crime.
According to Europe 1, investigators searched Orlinski’s Paris home and the offices of six of his companies in July. They seized around €25,000 in cash and 12 luxury watches valued at roughly €880,000, taking the total seized to close to €905,000.
A source close to the case told the outlet that an analysis of six years of company accounts identified around €5.5 million in transfers, direct or indirect, between Orlinski’s companies and those of a man suspected of laundering money. Orlinski is said to have bought a property company from that individual at a knock-down price, with holdings in Paris’s 16th arrondissement, Vincennes and Saint-Mandé.
Investigators are also looking into possible cash payments that may have helped fund his lifestyle, something Orlinski denies.
It is not the first time Orlinski has faced scrutiny from financial investigators, according to Europe 1, though at this stage none of the proceedings referred to has resulted in him being formally placed under investigation.
Orlinski is no stranger to the Principality. His sculptures were exhibited aboard the yacht carrying a Ferrari F40 during the Monaco Grand Prix, staged as part of a launch event for crypto platform Altr, and he has shown work across the Riviera on a number of occasions.
His pieces, mainly large-scale, brightly lacquered animals, have also been displayed in cities including Paris, New York and Beverly Hills, and he was inducted into Paris’s Musée Grévin in March 2026.