John Peter Moore, at 86; aide to artist Salvador Dali

MADRID -- John Peter Moore, a close aide to Salvador Dali convicted of tampering with one of the surrealist master's paintings, died Monday, according to media reports and funeral officials. He was 86.

Mr. Moore died in Port Lligat, a Mediterranean town where he ran an art gallery yards away from Dali's main studio, according to the Spanish news agency EFE and the daily newspaper El Pais. No cause of death was reported.

Known as Captain Moore because of his WWII service in Britain's Royal Navy, Mr. Moore accompanied Dali on many of his world tours during his 20 years as personal assistant.

As Dali became ill and bedridden, Mr. Moore's influence over the artist's activities increased. His connection to the painter led to scandal.

In October 2004, Mr. Moore and his wife, Catherine Perrot, were convicted of tampering with Dali's 1969 painting ''The Double Image of Gala." The painting was stolen in 1974 and found in Mr. Moore's Perrot-Moore Art Center in 1999.

A subsequent search of Mr. Moore's home and workshops revealed 10,000 allegedly faked Dali lithographs. Mr. Moore, who was accused of reducing the size of the ''Gala" canvas, denied tampering with or forging any of Dali's work.

Mr. Moore and Perrot were ordered to pay $1.2 million in compensation to the Dali-Gala Foundation, which looks after the painter's heritage. They were also ordered to pay for the restoration costs of the painting.

Dali died in 1989.