Court dates are scheduled for eight in burglary ring
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
Jun. 16—Accused burglar Thomas Trotta will plead guilty in federal court July 5 to a felony and admit he helped steal art and other valuables, according to a notice issued Friday.
Trotta, of Moscow, agreed to plead guilty to one count of theft of major artwork. U.S. District Judge Malachy E. Mannion will hear his plea at 10:30 a.m. at the William J. Nealon Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse.
Trotta, 48, proved a key figure in a decadeslong investigation of a burglary ring that targeted museums and other institutions, including the Everhart Museum, Keystone College and the Country Club of Scranton.
He is one of nine people the U.S. attorney's office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced charges against Thursday. Of those nine, Trotta and four others have already agreed to plead guilty.
On June 30, Dawn Trotta, Ralph Parry and Frank Tassiello will appear before Mannion during the morning to enter pleas to counts of conspiracy to commit theft of major artwork, concealment and disposal of major artwork and interstate transportation of stolen property, records show.
Tassiello, 50, of Scranton, is scheduled for 11:30 a.m. Dawn Trotta, 51, and Ralph Parry, 45, each of Covington Twp., are scheduled respectively for 9:30 and 10:30 a.m.
Also on June 30, Daryl Rinker is slated to enter a plea to conspiracy to commit concealment and disposal of major artwork and disposal of major artwork. The 50-year-old from Thornhurst Twp. has a hearing scheduled at 1:30 p.m.
Meanwhile, indicted co-defendants Damien Boland, 47, Alfred Atsus, 47, and Joseph Atsus, 48, are tentatively slated to appear for trial in Mannion's courtroom Aug. 21. That is likely to be pushed back.
Boland, of Moscow, Alfred Atsus, of Covington Twp., and Joseph Atsus, of Roaring Brook Twp., have pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Nicholas Dombek — once described to state police by Thomas Trotta as the "mastermind" behind many burglaries — remains at large.
Anyone with information on the whereabouts of Dombek, 53, of Thornhurst Twp., should contact 1-800-Call-FBI.
Contact the writer:
570-348-9100, x5187;
@jkohutTT on Twitter.
