John Lennon signs the copy of Double Fantasy that is coming up for auction..
One of the grisliest artefacts in musical history is up for sale, with a murderer's fingerprints on its sleeve. An American dealer is selling a copy of John Lennon's Double Fantasy, an LP Lennon signed for Mark David Chapman – his killer.
On 8 December 1980, just five hours before Lennon's death, Chapman was photographed approaching the Beatle to get him to sign a record. After Chapman shot Lennon outside his home, this LP was allegedly found by a maintenance man in a planter outside the gate. It was handed over to police, according to the dealer, who uncovered Chapman's fingerprints around the autograph. Officials later returned it to the owner, "with a letter of extreme gratitude from the district attorney".
"The album is the most extraordinary artefact in rock'n'roll history," said Bob Zafian, a spokesman for the seller. "I have never come across a piece with such provenance. Police reports, fingerprint documentation, letters from the [district attorney], it goes on and on." The original owner, a lifelong Beatles fan, sold the item for an alleged $150,000 (£94,000) in 1999. It is now up for sale via Moments in Time. According to the New York Post, the auction site is seeking $850,000 (£535,000).
As for who is selling the item, Moments in Time is keeping his identity secret. "[He] doesn't want to be named because he received death threats," Zafian said. Chapman himself sought to reclaim – and sell – the LP. In a 1986 letter, Lennon's murderer said it would be "the least [he] could do" to auction the album and donate the proceeds to a children's charity. "Is there any way to assess the value of an item such as this?"
Presently serving a sentence of 20 years to life, Chapman was denied parole in September for the sixth time.
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