On March 13 Thomas Trotta, 49, of Dunmore, Pennsylvania, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Malachy E. Mannion to 96 months’ imprisonment, to be followed by a term of supervised release, for one count of theft of major artwork. He was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $2,759,073.
Trotta had previously pleaded guilty to one count of theft of major artwork and admitted to stealing the following: La Grande Passion by Andy Warhol and Springs Winter by Jackson Pollock, stolen in 2005 from the Everhart Museum, Scranton, Pennsylvania; nine World Series rings, seven other championship rings, and two Most Valuable Player (MVP) plaques, all belonging to Yogi Berra, worth over $500,000 and stolen in 2014 from the Yogi Berra Museum & Learning Center, Little Falls, New Jersey; six championship belts, including four belonging to Carmen Basilio and two belonging to Tony Zale, stolen in 2015 from the International Boxing Hall of Fame, Canastota, New York; the Hickok Belt and an MVP trophy belonging to Roger Maris, stolen in 2016 from the Roger Maris Museum, Fargo, North Dakota; the U.S. Amateur trophy and a Hickok Belt awarded to Ben Hogan, stolen in 2012 from the USGA Golf Museum & Library, Bernards Township, New Jersey; 14 trophies and other awards worth approximately $300,000, stolen in 2012 from the Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame, Goshen, New York; five trophies worth over $30,000, including the 1903 Belmont Stakes trophy, stolen in 2013 from the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, Saratoga Springs, New York; three antique firearms stolen in 2006 from Space Farms Zoo & Museum, Wantage, New Jersey; a 1903-04 Tiffany lamp stolen in 2010 from the Lackawanna Historical Society, Scranton, Pennsylvania; Upper Hudson by Jasper Cropsey, worth approximately $120,000, stolen in 2011 from Ringwood Manor, Ringwood, New Jersey; antique firearms worth over $150,000, stolen in 2011 from Ringwood Manor; hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of gold nuggets, stolen in 2011 from the Sterling Hill Mining Museum, Ogdensburg, New Jersey; and an antique shotgun worth over $30,000, stolen in 2018 from Space Farms Zoo & Museum.
Trotta committed the above thefts as part of a larger eight-person conspiracy. After a month-long trial held earlier this year, co-conspirators Nicholas Dombek, 54, of Thornhurst, Pennsylvania; Damien Boland, 48, of Moscow, Pennsylvania; and Joseph Atsus, 48, of Roaring Brook, Pennsylvania, were convicted of conspiracy to commit theft of major artwork, concealment and disposal of major artwork, and interstate transportation of stolen property, as well as multiple related substantive offenses. Their sentencing is pending.
Three additional co-conspirators pleaded guilty pursuant to felony informations and were sentenced by Judge Mannion earlier this year. They include Dawn Trotta, 53, of Dunmore, Pennsylvania, who was sentenced to 15 months’ imprisonment for conspiracy to commit theft of major artwork, concealment and disposal of major artwork, and interstate transportation of stolen property; Frank Tassiello, 52, of Taylor, Pennsylvania, who was sentenced to six months’ imprisonment for conspiracy to commit theft of major artwork, concealment and disposal of major artwork, and interstate transportation of stolen property; and Ralph Parry, 47, of Springbrook Township, Pennsylvania, who was sentenced to three years of probation as well as a period of home confinement for conspiracy to commit theft of major artwork, concealment and disposal of major artwork, and interstate transportation of stolen property.
After stealing the items described above, the conspirators would transport the stolen goods back to northeastern Pennsylvania, often to the residence of Dombek, and melt the memorabilia down into easily transportable metal disks or bars. The conspirators would then sell the raw metal to fences in the New York City area for hundreds or a few thousands of dollars, significantly less than the sports memorabilia would be worth at fair market value.
Dombek burned the painting Upper Hudson by Jasper Cropsey to avoid its being recovered by investigators and used as evidence against the members of the conspiracy. The whereabouts of many of the other paintings and stolen objects are currently unknown; however, several antique firearms stolen from the Space Farms Zoo and Museum and the Ringwood Manor Museum, both in New Jersey, were recovered by investigators.
Originally published in the May 2025 issue of Maine Antique Digest. © 2025 Maine Antique Digest
