Federal prosecutors in Manhattan have charged a former London and Miami-based art dealer with defrauding investors and collectors out of more than $20 million in an alleged scheme to prop up his business.

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York on Friday announced the unsealing of a criminal complaint against Inigo Philbrick, who prosecutors said specialized in post-war and contemporary fine art sales before going on the run late last year.

Inigo Philbrick. Photo: Getty Images Inigo Philbrick. Photo: Getty Images

According to the complaint, Philbrick, 33, made "material misrepresentations and omissions" to New York-area art collectors, investors and lenders over the course of four years, passing himself off as a dealer of valuable pieces and selling more than 100% ownership in the works without clients' knowledge. Prosecutors alleged that Philbrick sold the artworks as collateral on loans and never disclosed the ownership interests of third parties to buyers and lenders.