A Lackawanna County man described by authorities as the ringleader of an eight-person theft ring that targeted museums and collectors across several states was sentenced last week to 10 years in federal prison and ordered to pay $2.7 million in restitution.

Nicholas Dombek, 55, of Thornhurst, was sentenced by U.S. Judge Malachy E. Mannion after a jury last year found him guilty on eight counts, including conspiracy, theft of major artwork, concealment and disposal of major artwork, and interstate transportation of stolen property.

According to U.S. Attorney Brian D. Miller, Dombek and his co-defendants were responsible for stealing or disposing of high-profile artwork, sports memorabilia and valuables from museums and businesses between 2005 and 2017.

Among the items taken:

• “Le Grande Passion” by Andy Warhol and “Springs Winter,” purportedly by Jackson Pollock, stolen in 2005 from the Everhart Museum in Scranton.

• Six championship belts — four belonging to Carmen Basilio and two to Tony Zale — stolen in 2015 from the International Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota, New York.

• The Hickok Belt and MVP Trophy awarded to Roger Maris, stolen in 2016 from the Roger Maris Museum in Fargo, North Dakota.

• Nine World Series and championship rings and two MVP plaques belonging to Yogi Berra, stolen in 2014 from the Yogi Berra Museum & Learning Center in Little Falls, New Jersey.

• The U.S. Amateur Trophy and a Hickok Belt awarded to Ben Hogan, stolen in 2012 from the USGA Golf Museum & Library in Liberty Corner, New Jersey.

• Fourteen trophies valued at about $300,000 from the Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame in Goshen, New York, in 2012.

• Five trophies worth more than $350,000, including the 1903 Belmont Stakes Trophy, stolen in 2013 from the National Racing Museum & Hall of Fame in Saratoga Springs, New York.

• Three antique firearms stolen in 2006 from Space Farms Zoo & Museum in Wantage, New Jersey.

• “Upper Hudson” by Jasper Cropsey, valued at about $120,000, and antique firearms worth more than $150,000, stolen in 2011 from Ringwood Manor in Ringwood, New Jersey.

• Trophies belonging to Art Wall Jr., including the Milwaukee Open Trophy, Eastern Open Trophy and Pennsylvania Amateur Cup, stolen in 2011 from the Scranton Country Club in Clarks Summit.

• Gold nuggets and precious metals worth more than $100,000 from the Sterling Hill Mining Museum in Ogdensburg, New Jersey, in 2011.

• Gems and minerals stolen in 2017 from the Franklin Mineral Museum in Franklin, New Jersey.

• Jewelry, coins and other valuables taken from businesses in Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and New York.

Testimony showed Dombek worked with Damien Boland, 49, of Covington Township, and Joseph Atsus, 51, of Roaring Brook, along with several others.

Boland was sentenced in December to 108 months in prison. In January, Atsus received 48 months. Other co-conspirators sentenced in 2025 were Thomas Trotta of Dunmore, 96 months; Dawn Trotta of Dunmore, 15 months; Frank Tassiello of Taylor, six months; and Ralph Parry of Spring Brook Township, three years of probation with home confinement.

Authorities said the group often transported stolen items back to Northeastern Pennsylvania, frequently to Dombek’s home, where memorabilia was melted down into metal disks or bars and sold in the New York City area for a fraction of their true value.

Investigators said Dombek burned Cropsey’s “Upper Hudson,” valued at about $125,000, to prevent it from being recovered and used as evidence. Many other stolen items remain missing, though several antique firearms were recovered, including one Boland had hidden at a relative’s home in another state.

After a search warrant was executed at Dombek’s home in 2019, authorities said he threatened two co-conspirators if they cooperated with police. In 2023, after being indicted, he fled from FBI agents attempting to arrest him and remained a fugitive for nearly six months before turning himself in at the Lackawanna County Jail on New Year’s Day 2024.