PA Man Gets 1 Day In Jail For Stealing Revolutionary War-Era Gun

KING OF PRUSSIA, PA — The Pottstown man who had stolen a Revolutionary War-era rifle from Valley Forge National Historical Park back in 1971 and sold it to an antiques dealer 47 years later received a federal prison sentence of one day, plus three years of supervised release.

Thomas Gavin, 78, received his sentence Tuesday in federal court by U.S. District Court Judge Mark A. Kearney, according to the United States Attorney's Office For the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

Gavin will have to serve out the first year of his three years of supervised release on home confinement, and he'll also have to pay a $25,000 fine and restitution of $23,385.

Gavin pleaded guilty in July to one count of disposal of an object of cultural heritage stolen from a museum. As part of his plea, Gavin admitted that he had stolen the antique Christian Oerter rifle from the then-Valley Forge State Park Museum. (Valley Forge was a state park before it became part of the National Park Service).

Gavin had stolen the rifle, which dated to 1775, out of a glass display case by using a crowbar or similar tool.

The rifle is reported to be worth in excess of $175,000.

"Stealing an artifact from a museum — literally a piece of American history — is a serious federal offense," U.S. Attorney Jennifer Arbittier Williams said in a statement. "After four decades, justice finally caught up with this defendant. Thanks to the work of our law enforcement partners, the Christian Oerter rifle is safely back where it can be enjoyed by all Americans."

Patch first reported on the sentencing on Monday. That report can be viewed here in its entirety.

In a statement, Jacqueline Maguire, special agent in charge of the FBI's Philadelphia Division, said that it was "way past time for Mr. Gavin to be held accountable for his actions."

"This case is a great example of the FBI's commitment to protecting and preserving the cultural property that helps tell the story of our nation," Maguire stated.

According to federal prosecutors, Gavin had admitted that he kept the rifle for close to 50 years, finally selling it to antiques dealer Kelly Kinzle in 2018, along with other items that he had stolen from museums during the 1970s.

The rifle is known to be extremely rare, with the only other known Christian Oerter rifle in the Royal Collection at Windsor Castle in England.