*** FBI opens probe of eBay art auction

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - The FBI is reportedly investigating whether
groups of people are driving up prices on eBay and other Internet
auction sites by bidding on each others' items. The probe was
prompted by media reports about Sacramento lawyer Kenneth Walton's
attempts to sell a painting that bidders thought was by the late
abstract master Richard Diebenkorn, The Sacramento Bee and The New
York Times reported Wednesday. Donald Vilfer, a supervisory special
agent in the FBI's Sacramento office, said the bureau turned its
attention to the case after reading a June 2 story in the Times
outlining how Walton and several other eBay users had engaged in
cross-bidding on one another's items and offered glowing testimonials
to each other on the site. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2567164413-47b