According to Keystone State authorities, a Pennsylvania man’s long history of “thievery” has resulted in a significant prison sentence.
According to a press release from the Bradford County District Attorney’s Office, Matthew Patrick Gay, 34, was recently convicted of multiple offenses related to a string of diamond thefts that occurred at a Walmart Supercenter near Athens Township — a small community along the New York State border — throughout 2022.
In total, the defendant stole seven diamond rings worth $7,362.50 from the same store on multiple occasions.
This was not Gay’s first conviction.
The defendant was found guilty following his arrest in October 2022 and is scheduled to be sentenced in August 2024, according to the prosecutor’s office. Gay, however, did not attend his sentencing hearing; instead, he fled the county, prompting the issuance of a warrant for his arrest.
“While on the run, Gay committed similar offenses in Berks County,” the press release says — a county located about 130 miles south — resulting in a sentence of five to 24 months in prison, plus two years probation.
In April 2025, the defendant returned to Bradford County, where he was charged with retail theft and failure to appear — the latter charge stemming from missing his original sentencing date. Both charges are third-degree felonies.
Gay was caught on surveillance footage asking a clerk behind the jewelry counter to look at a specific ring, according to the prosecutor’s office. Then, when the employee was distracted, Gay replaced the stolen ring with one from his pocket.
The defendant was once charged with grand larceny in the Empire State “for doing the same thing,” according to the prosecutor’s office. However, those charges were eventually dropped.
Gay was eventually sentenced to at least 23 months and 258 days in state prison, with a maximum of 95 months.
“Gay’s criminal history includes more than two dozen offenses of this nature,” Bradford County District Attorney Richard Wilson said in a release. “Therefore, a lengthy state prison sentence is appropriate. It appears to be the only way we can protect society against Matthew Gay’s thievery.”