Gardner Museum security chief to run for statewide office

BOSTON — A man who has spent more than a decade trying to solve Boston's most famous art heist is planning a run for statewide office.

Anthony Amore - security director at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and former Homeland Security official - on Tuesday announced his candidacy for secretary of the commonwealth.

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The Swampscott Republican is hoping to unseat the current Democratic Secretary William Galvin.

Amore was brought in after an art theft at the Gardner a dozen years ago to lead the museum's investigation for the missing works. The 1990 theft of an estimated $500 million worth of artwork, including works by Rembrandt and Johannes Vermeer, is considered the largest art heist in history.

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The theft remains unsolved.

PHOTOS: Artwork stolen from Isabella Gardner Museum

Among other duties, the secretary of the commonwealth oversees the state's elections.

Associated Press