Our research shows two of the paintings are not authentic

Magnus Mitchell Researcher in stolen art

Turkish police detained MP Mustafa Bayram and four other men at the weekend after they said the men approached undercover officers posing as buyers with two paintings and asked for $3 million.

Mr Bayram, who police say was waiting in a car outside during the operation, was later released after claiming immunity.

Among those detained were his nephew and his driver.

Mr Bayram was charged in 1999 with ordering the murder of two men in the eastern city of Van in 1997.

But he was not arrested then because of his immunity. He faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted.

Genuine or fakes?

The seizures raised to eight the number of purported Picasso paintings recovered in Turkey over the past year.

Picasso: a prolific artist, much admired and much copied

Officials think the paintings were stolen from a Kuwaiti palace during the Gulf War in 1991 and smuggled to Turkey via Iraq.

Several experts have raised doubts about the authenticity of the supposed Picasso works found in Turkey.

Since the paintings began surfacing last year, no one has claimed ownership.

If genuine, the works would be worth millions of dollars.

A researcher in stolen art told Reuters news agency that at least two of the eight paintings were fakes.

Billion dollar industry

Magnus Mitchell of the London-based Art Loss Register said his organisation has no record of the paintings and was doubtful they are "authentic Picassos".

"We checked with the Picasso Museum in Paris, which has a very thorough inventory of Picassos around the world, and they did not come back with authentication," he said.

The recovered works are now in the custody of the Turkish Culture Ministry and most are on display in a state museum.

The value of paintings by masters such as Picasso means art theft is no longer just an elitist crime funded by unscrupulous collectors, but has become a billion dollar industry linked to drugs cartels and illicit arms dealing.